INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Burma

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance the Government are providing to projects promoting human rights and democracy in Burma.

Gareth Thomas: DFID provides significant support to projects to help the people of Burma access their human rights and build the foundations for sustainable democracy. Our programme includes a wide variety of activities, such as capacity-building for local non-governmental organisations (NGOs), training for journalists, work to involve poor people in decision-making about issues that affect them, and support for the empowerment of poor women. In addition, the British embassy in Rangoon is carrying out extremely valuable work to build local capacity.
	DFID is about to start work on the implementation of a £3.0 million programme designed to expand and strengthen DFID's work to support increased prospects for a successful transition to democracy and respect for human rights in Burma. The programme will increase opportunities for Burma's people to engage in political decision-making processes at local level affecting their welfare, livelihoods and governance.

Departments: Disciplinary Proceedings

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many grievance procedures have been initiated in his Department in the last 12 months.

Gareth Thomas: DFID's grievance procedure is fully compliant with UK legislation and applies to civil servants working in the UK and overseas. We also apply it, unless local law dictates otherwise, to staff appointed in country (SAIC) who work under local contracts. In the last year, 13 grievance procedures were initiated in DFID, as set out in the following table.
	
		
			  Number 
			 Number of cases 13 
			 Number upheld 3 
			 Not upheld 8 
			 Cases currently under way 2 
			 Appeals 2 
			 Appeals upheld 0

Departments: Intimidation

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many complaints of bullying have been investigated in his Department in the last 12 months; and how many complaints have been upheld.

Gareth Thomas: DFID's grievance procedures are fully compliant with UK legislation and apply to civil servants working in the UK and overseas. We also apply them to our locally appointed staff overseas, who work under local contacts, unless local law dictates otherwise.
	DFID investigated less than five complaints of bullying in the last 12 months. Due to the small number, a breakdown by number, employment status and outcome is not made public on the grounds of confidentiality.

Departments: Renewable Energy

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much energy in kilowatt hours was purchased by his Department from renewable sources in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Gareth Thomas: DFID is committed to meeting the new sustainable operations on the Government Estate targets including the mandatory requirement to source at least 10 per cent. of energy from renewable sources.
	During 2006-07 DFID consumed 6,991,124 kilowatt hours of electricity; approximately 95 per cent. of which was from renewable sources. From the start of 2007 the proportion from renewable sources is 100 per cent.

International Assistance

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if his Department will assess the merits of reporting against the underweight indicator in the public service agreement as one of the agreed indicators for millennium development goal 1.

Hilary Benn: DFID is currently developing the indicators for the new public service agreement (PSA) on international poverty reduction which will cover the period April 2008 to March 2011. The final indicators will be subject to approval by the Treasury and will be dependent on wider discussions across Government.
	The elimination of poverty in poorer countries through the achievement of the millennium development goals still remains our overarching goal. The PSA will therefore draw indicators from the set of millennium development goals and the inclusion of a specific indicator covering the prevalence of underweight children under five years of age is part of our current proposal.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Climate Change

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2007,  Official Report, column 766W, on climate change, what the publication date is for the final report of the independent review into the activities of the Meteorological Office Hadley Centre.

Ian Pearson: The final report on the independent review into the activities of the Meteorological Office Hadley Centre is due to be published by early summer.

Climate Change

Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  if he will make it his policy that, at the forthcoming Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in Bangkok, temperature data be made available as part of the summary for policy makers; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  why temperature data over the last 10,000 years were excluded from the Final Draft International Panel on Climate Change Summary for Policy Makers.

Ian Pearson: holding answer 1 May 2007
	The forthcoming meetings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in Bangkok will comprise the ninth session of IPCC Working Group III and the 26th( )session of the IPCC. The first meeting will accept the Working Group III contribution to the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) and approve its Summary for Policymakers (SPM). The second meeting will accept the actions by the sessions of IPCC Working Groups I, II and III, review the IPCC terms of reference and discuss future work.
	The reports of the IPCC are written by hundreds of scientists from across the world and provide an assessment of peer-reviewed scientific and technical literature on climate change. The IPCC does not carry out new research. As such, all the data contained within the IPCC's reports are already available in published literature and are independent of Government.
	The SPM summarises the findings of the underlying report. The SPM is drafted by scientists and agreed by all Governments at the IPCC plenaries. The agreement of the SPM helps to communicate the IPCC outputs to Governments. No one Government, organisation or individual has sole responsibility for any part of the report.

Livestock: Waste Disposal

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to mitigate the adverse environmental effects of fallen stock collection and incineration and the associated carbon dioxide emissions;
	(2)  how much carbon dioxide was released into the environment as a result of  (a) fallen stock collection,  (b) the burning of fallen stock and  (c) the rendering of fallen stock in each year between 2004 and 2006.

Ben Bradshaw: My Department has made no assessment on the amount of carbon dioxide released as a result of fallen stock collection and disposal. However, total UK greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture fell by 16.4 per cent. between 1990 and 2005—the latest year that estimates are available.
	The Animal By-Products Regulation (EC) No. 1774/2002 prohibits the burial, dumping or open-burning of fallen stock (with few exceptions) and is in place to protect public and animal health. Incineration and rendering provide a safe and controlled way of dealing with the disposal of animal carcasses.
	There are various animal health and environmental controls that incinerator operators must follow when disposing of fallen stock. These can be found on the DEFRA website.

Sewage: Renewable Energy

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research he has  (a) commissioned and  (b) supported into energy production through (i) fermentation, (ii) microbial fuel cells, (iii) anaerobic digestion, (iv) gasification and (v) pyrolysis of sewage.

Ian Pearson: My Department has not commissioned or supported any research into these methods of energy production, as they are well established and successful technologies.

Sewage: Renewable Energy

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what incentives are in place to encourage water companies to invest in energy production from sewage waste.

Ian Pearson: The Government's key mechanism for encouraging renewable electricity generation is the renewables obligation (RO) which will provide around £1 billion per year of support to the renewables industry by 2010. Sewage gas and (subject to certain conditions) biomass waste, which could be sewage or sewage sludge, are eligible under the RO.

Water Charges

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the  (a) standing charges,  (b) cost per litre and  (c) other charges levied by each water company in England and Wales are on individual households (i) with and (ii) without water meters.

Ian Pearson: Ofwat is the economic regulator of the water and sewerage industry in England and Wales. It approves companies' charges schemes each year and provides detailed information in its water and sewerage charges report. Ofwat will publish its 2007-08 report on 16 May.
	The volumetric rate for metered customers is calculated on the basis of cost per cubic metre. The following tables summarise the charges that are levied by water companies for 2007-08 on households both with and without water meters.
	
		
			  Unmetered water and sewerage tariffs for household customers 2007-08 
			   Fixed water charge (£/year)  Rateable value water charge (p/£RV)  Average water bill in 2007-08 (£)  Fixed sewerage charge (£/year)  Rateable value sewerage charge (p/£RV)  Average sewerage bill in 2007-08 (£) 
			  Water and sewerage companies   
			 Anglian: — — 189 141.89 45.01 228 
			 Anglian 118.93 42.05 — — — — 
			 Hartlepool 116.81 — — — — — 
			 Dwr Cymru 106.27 60.56 171 135.42 82.56 230 
			
			 Northumbrian: — — — 95.40 46.35 163 
			
			 North East 68.40 41.23 129 — — — 
			
			 Essex and Suffolk: 39.00 — 180 — — — 
			 Essex — 57.92 — — — — 
			 Suffolk — 101.79 — — — — 
			
			 Severn Trent: — — 145 — — 139 
			 Zone 1 — 85.47 — — 80.15 — 
			 Zone 2 — 76.92 — — 67.50 — 
			 Zone 3 — 74.59 — — 71.12 — 
			 Zone 4 — 77.93 — — 77.11 — 
			 Zone 5 — 89.60 — — 89.97 — 
			 Zone 6 — 93.20 — — 87.13 — 
			 Zone 7 — 93.84 — — 84.91 — 
			 Zone 8 — 74.59 — — 70.62 — 
			
			 South West 93.50 99.12 242 82.50 223.58 408 
			
			 Southern 29.54 48.00 121 56.28 89.60 228 
			 Thames: 25.00 — 172 32.00 — 109 
			
			 Area 1 — 58.34 — — 30.65 — 
			 Area 2 — 59.39 — — 31.77 — 
			 Area 3 — 44.64 — — 19.95 — 
			 Area 4 — 53.45 — — 28.65 — 
			 Area 5 — 68.66 — — 37.55 — 
			 Area 6 — 59.55 — — 31.07 — 
			 Area 7 — 81.81 — — 43.67 — 
			
			 United Utilities 47.00 68.60 156 — 114.50 185 
			
			 Wessex 7.00 113.34 201 7.00 108.56 198 
			
			 Yorkshire: — — 151 35.81 104.00 168 
			 Yorkshire 31.87 95.70 — — — — 
			 York 25.01 54.50 — — — — 
			
			  Water only companies   
			 Bournemouth and W Hampshire 21.50 60.64 147 — — — 
			
			 Bristol 22.00 69.30 148 — — — 
			
			 Cambridge 23.40 45.00 123 — — — 
			
			 Cholderton 36.00 68.06 180 — — — 
			
			 Dee Valley: — — 131 — — — 
			 Chester 30.32 45.03 — — — — 
			 Wrexham 76.84 48.08 — — — — 
			
			 Folkestone and Dover 43.00 93.82 199 — — — 
			
			 Mid Kent 51.00 65.09 170 — — — 
			
			 Portsmouth 20.00 31.10 85 — — — 
			
			 South East: 20.00 — 179 — — — 
			
			 Eastbourne — 90.66 — — — — 
			 Mid Southern — 52.47 — — — — 
			 Mid-Sussex — 96.50 — — — — 
			 West Kent — 84.50 — — — — 
			
			 South Staffordshire — 55.36 115 — — — 
			
			 Sutton and East Surrey: — — 168 — — — 
			
			 Croydon 37.00 35.75 — — — — 
			
			 Northern Area 144.14 — — — — — 
			
			 Southern Area 37.00 60.72 — — — — 
			
			 Tendring Hundred 33.00 86.32 194 — — — 
			 Three Valleys — — 158 — — — 
			 Three Valleys 34.20 — — — — — 
			 Colne Valley — 43.44 — — — — 
			 Lee Valley — 53.35 — — — — 
			
			 Rickmansworth — 42.34 — — — — 
			
			 North Surrey 34.20 44.61 — — — — 
		
	
	
		
			  Metered water and sewerage tariffs for household customers 2007-08 
			   Standing water charge (£/year)  Volumetric water charge (p/m3)  Average water bill in 2007-08  Standing sewerage charge (£year)  Volumetric sewerage charge (p/m3)  Average sewerage bill in 2007-08 
			 Anglian — — 132 — — 167 
			
			 Anglian Standard 24.00 115.14 — 67.00 112.04 — 
			
			 SoLow 0.00 147.14 — 0.00 201.38 — 
			
			 Aquacare Plus 64.00 61.80 — 111 .00 53.38 — 
			
			 Hartlepool Standard 24.00 82.09 — — — — 
			
			 SoLow 0.00 114.09 — — — — 
			
			 Aquacare Plus 50.00 47.42 — — — — 
			
			 Dwr Cymru 29.00 122.60 113 65.00 131.30 156 
			
			 Northumbrian 28.80 — — 64.20 81.61 139 
			 North East — 85.39 110 — — — 
			
			 Essex and Suffolk — — 132 — — — 
			 Essex — 93.64 — — — — 
			 Suffolk — 127.31 — — — — 
			
			 Severn Trent 20.95 115.07 134 11.05 78.99 135 
			
			 South West 27.60 145.03 160 12.12 256.02 218 
			
			 Southern 26.44 81.80 112 47.30 128.95 179 
			
			 Thames 24.00 99.18 146 43.00 48.57 108 
			
			 United Utilities 27.00 121.80 148 77.00 96.50 169 
			
			 Wessex 17.00 148.25 153 36.00 133.96 162 
			
			 Yorkshire — — 125 35.81 111.25 137 
			 Yorkshire 25.84 109.20 — — — — 
			 York 22.79 61.10 — — — — 
			  Water only companies   
			 Bournemouth and W Hampshire 21.50 93.79 121  — — 
			
			 Bristol 30.00 98.22 126 — — — 
			
			 Cambridge 25.50 75.50 102 — — — 
			
			 Cholderton 25.00 112.51 116 — — — 
			
			 Dee Valley 24.00 — 101 — — — 
			 Chester — 78.08 — — — — 
			 Wrexham — 84.52 — — — — 
			 Folkestone and Dover 27.68 122.88 148 — — — 
			
			 Mid Kent — — 131 — — — 
			 Standard 23.40 95.07 — — — — 
			 Low User 0.00 126.27 — — — — 
			 Helpu/Medico 57.54 61.22 — — — — 
			
			 Portsmouth 24.00 57.50 87 — — — 
			
			 South East 16.12 — 144 — — — 
			 Eastbourne — 140.60 — — — — 
			 Mid Southern — 79.96 — — — — 
			 Mid-Sussex — 146.93 — — — — 
			 West Kent — 117.43 — — — — 
			
			 South Staffordshire 25.34 78.08 107 — — — 
			
			 Sutton and East Surrey 24.20 — 122 — — — 
			 Northern Area — 79.20 — — — — 
			 Southern Area — 102.65 — — — — 
			
			 Tendring Hundred 23.40 145.79 145 — — — 
			
			 Three Valleys 26.00 84.41 135 — — —

WALES

Supermarket Practices

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues in the Department of Trade and Industry on encouraging Welsh farmers to submit evidence to the Competition Commission's inquiry into supermarket practices.

Nick Ainger: I have regular meetings with ministerial colleagues at the Department of Trade and Industry to discuss a variety of issues.

Policing

Peter Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on policing in Wales.

Peter Hain: I have regular discussions with my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary on all matters affecting Wales, including policing.

Policing

David Gauke: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on policing in Wales.

Peter Hain: I have regular discussions with my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary on all matters affecting Wales, including policing.

Antisocial Behaviour

Hywel Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the First Minister on measures to tackle youth nuisance, graffiti and vandalism in Wales.

Peter Hain: I regularly meet the First Minister to discuss a range of issues in Wales, including matters affecting our local environment.

Bilingual Juries

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the consultation on bilingual juries in Wales.

Nick Ainger: The Government have consulted on this issue and an announcement on the outcome of that consultation will be made in due course.

Out-patient Departure Closures

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the Welsh Assembly Government on cross-border issues relating to the closures of out-patient departments.

Nick Ainger: I regularly meet with the Assembly Minister for Health and Social Services to discuss a range of issues, including cross-border issues.

Health Services

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the First Minister on cross-border issues affecting health services in Wales.

Nick Ainger: I regularly meet with the Assembly Minister for Health and Social Service when we discuss a range of issues, including cross-border issues affecting health services in Wales.

DEFENCE

Anglo-French Battle Groups

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the status is of the proposed UK/French/German Battle Group referred to in the answer of 27 February 2004,  Official Report, column 614W, on Anglo-French battle groups; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: There are no plans to form a UK/French/German Battle Group, nor have there been in the past.
	The UK, France and Germany have however been instrumental in developing the EU Battlegroup concept, which achieved full operational capability in January 2007. EU Battlegroups are small, mobile self-sustaining forces (approximately 1,500 troops) intended for rapid intervention in a crisis, typically in response to a UN request. There are two EU Battlegroups on standby at any time. The UK provided a national Battlegroup on standby during the first half of 2005 and will do so again in 2008. With the Netherlands we have also offered an amphibious Battlegroup in 2010. Each Battlegroup will be on standby for a period of six months.

Armed Forces: Gibraltar

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many British troops are stationed in Gibraltar.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 8 March 2007
	As at 31 March 2007, some 350 regular forces personnel were stationed in Gibraltar.

Armed Forces: Health Services

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many uniformed  (a) doctors,  (b) dentists,  (c) nurses and  (d) medical and dental support staff are employed by each armed service.

Derek Twigg: The number of uniformed doctors, dentists, nurses and medical and support staff who are employed by each single service is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Service  Medical officers (which include primary consultants, secondary consultants and GPs)  Dental officers  Nurses (not including health care assistants)  Allied Health Professionals, medical dental support staff 
			 RN 130 51 290 890 
			 Army 240 130 620 2550 
			 RAF 130 61 430 980 
			  Note: Figures over 100 are rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: DMSD 
		
	
	Numbers are correct as of 1 January 2007, and include fully qualified service personnel only.

Army: Northern Ireland

Jeffrey M Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether  (a) general service soldiers,  (b) full-time members of the Royal Irish Regiment Home Service,  (c) part-time members of the Royal Irish Regiment Home Service,  (d) full-time soldiers who served with the Ulster Defence Regiment and  (e) part-time soldiers who served with the Ulster Defence Regiment have their pay adjusted by the Armed Forces Pay Review Body to take into account the relevant benefits of the Armed Forces Pension Scheme.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 19 March 2007
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 20 March 2007,  Official Report, column 751W.

Defence Communication Services Agency: Pay

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the  (a) last pay raise was and  (b) next pay raise will be for the staff of the Defence Communication Services Agency.

Derek Twigg: In line with the Ministry of Defence pay award, the last pay rise awarded to staff within Information Systems and Services—formerly the Defence Communication Services Agency—was on 1 August 2006. This was paid in February 2007 and fully backdated to 1 August 2006. The next pay rise will be due as of 1 August 2007.

Departments: BAE Systems

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reasons security passes were issued by his Department to  (a) BAE Systems chief executive Mike Turner,  (b) former BAE Systems chairman Sir Richard Evans and  (c) BAE Systems group marketing director Mike Rouse; and if he will list for each of these individuals (i) on which date their current security pass was issued, (ii) on which date their current security pass is due to expire, (iii) to which premises they are given access with their current security pass and (iv) the dates on which any previous security passes were issued by his Department.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 20 April 2007
	In respect of MOD's main London buildings (main building, old War Office and St. George's Court) contractor security passes (valid for one year) have not been issued to any of those individuals listed in the question.
	MOD passes are issued locally at establishment, business unit, or budget area level. Details of passes issued are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departments: Complaints

Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has to establish  (a) a military complaints commission and  (b) an office of a military ombudsman.

Derek Twigg: The Armed Forces Act 2006 introduced a package of improvements to the service complaints process including the establishment of an independent Service Complaints Commissioner (SCC). The recruitment process for the position will begin shortly.
	In formulating changes to the complaints process, the objective was to introduce independence into the system without undermining the chain of command and its overall responsibilities for the welfare of those under command. While there are no plans to establish a military complaints commission or an office of a military ombudsman, the powers available to the SCC, combined with the other improvements, will offer service personnel a better overall system.

Departments: Databases

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what databases are controlled by his Department and its agencies; and what percentage of the data in each database he estimates is inaccurate or out of date.

Derek Twigg: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departments: Manpower

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many civilian personnel are employed by his Department in the north-east.

Derek Twigg: As at 1 January 2007 there were 510 (FTE) civilians employed by this department in the north-east.
	Full-time equivalence (FTE) counts part-time staff by the number of hours they work as a proportion of their full-time conditioned hours.

Departments: Publications

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of Joint Service Publication 530 for 2007-08.

Derek Twigg: Yes. I will provide a draft copy of JSP 530 for financial year 2007-08. The draft contains all the resource account codes for financial year 2007-08, but awaits an update of the textual part of the document describing the usage of the resource account codes. I plan to place the full version of JSP 530 in the Library of the House in June 2007.

European Council

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many EU Council meetings he has attended since taking up his post; and who represents him if he is unable to attend.

Des Browne: holding answer 30 April 2007
	During each six-month presidency, EU Defence Ministers meet once in the format of the General Affairs and External Relations Council. I have attended both such meetings since taking office. Another Minister or senior official would represent me if I were unable to attend.

HMS Cornwall: BBC

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence at what time and by what means the BBC crew  (a) were scheduled to leave and  (b) left HMS Cornwall on 23 March 2007.

Des Browne: The two BBC personnel and one journalist from  The Independent left HMS Cornwall, as planned, on the morning of 24 March. They travelled by seaboat to the USS Underwood and then by helicopter to Bahrain, also as planned.

Iran: Territorial Waters

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether all coalition personnel involved in the boarding of vessels in Iraqi waters are briefed on the rules of engagement with Iranian forces; and by whom.

Des Browne: All UK forces deployed on operations in the Operation Telic joint area of operations are briefed on the UK rules of engagement applicable to national and coalition operations, including those involved in the boarding of vessels in Iraqi waters. Personnel are briefed by Commanders both in-theatre and prior to deployment as part of their pre-deployment training.

Iran: Territorial Waters

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence in which country's territorial waters the service personnel detained by the Iranians in 2004 had been captured.

Des Browne: holding answer 24 April 2007
	As was made clear at the time, the service personnel who were detained by the Iranians reported that they were operating inside the Iraqi border and were forcibly escorted into Iranian territorial waters.

Lynx Helicopters: Procurement

Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the decision to procure the new Lynx helicopter was made; and on whose advice Ministers made the decision.

Adam Ingram: The decision to procure the new future Lynx helicopter was taken by MOD Ministers on the basis of advice and recommendations from the MOD Investment Approvals Board. Ministerial approval of the decision was announced on 22 June 2006.

M/V Al Hanin

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what type of boarding ladder the M/V Al Hanin used on 23 March 2007.

Des Browne: The merchant vessel Al Hanin's own pilot ladder was used.

Peace Keeping Operations: Iraq

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the joint operations which UK forces have undertaken with US forces in Iraq since March 2003; and where each such operation took place.

Des Browne: Operation Telic is the UK contribution to a coalition operation in Iraq which involves a number of countries, including the US and UK, working together to help the Iraqis build a stable, democratic and secure nation. As part of this wider operation UK and US forces regularly operate closely together.

Service Personnel: Media

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 24 April 2007,  Official Report, column 21WS, on Iraq, whether he expects the review team considering issues of media access to serving military personnel  (a) to investigate and  (b) to report on the sequence of events leading to the decision to allow some sailors to sell their stories; and whether the identities will be disclosed of the individuals in his Department who took that decision;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer of 24 April 2007 to question 132019,  Official Report, column 1013W, on service personnel: media, if he will give an example of an instance of which his Department is aware of a relative of a serving serviceman or woman selling a second-hand account to a media outlet.

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what role the Department played in managing the bids by media organisations for the stories of naval personnel recently seized by the Iranians.

Des Browne: holding answers 27 April and 1 May 2007
	 I refer my right hon. Friend and the hon. Member to the statement I made to the House on 16 April 2007,  Official Report, columns 23-26, and my further written statement of 24 April 2007,  Official Report, columns 21-22WS. While the independently-led review of media access to personnel is under way, it would be inappropriate for me to comment further on the issues involved.

Sonar

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with which sonar systems  (a) HMS Daring and  (b) HMS Dauntless are being fitted.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 1 May 2007
	Both HMS Daring and HMS Dauntless will be fitted with the Medium Frequency Sonar 7000 system.

Trident Submarines

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make an assessment of the evidence submitted to the Defence Select Committee in its inquiry into the future of the UK's strategic nuclear deterrent by Professor Richard Garwin, on the timetable for replacement of Trident submarines.

Des Browne: The rationale for the timetable for the replacement of the Vanguard-class submarines was set out in the White Paper: The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent (Cm 6994) published on 4 December 2006. The Ministry of Defence provided further detail on the expected life of the Vanguard-class in a letter to the Defence Select Committee dated 1 February 2007, which the Committee published in Volume II of its Ninth Report of Session 2006-07 (Ev 122) on 27 February 2007. I also covered this issue in detail during my evidence session with the Committee on 6 February, a transcript of which was published in the same Report (Ev 57).

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Bankruptcy

Philip Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much and what proportion of the total personal consumer debt was written off as a result of the use of individual voluntary arrangements in each of the last five years.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The extent of any debt written off by means of an individual voluntary arrangement (IVA) is a matter for agreement between the debtor proposing the arrangement and the creditors who must approve it. Such information is not held by Government.

Cuba: Sanctions

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations the Government has made to the US authorities on the impact on UK tourists and businesses of the expansion of extra-territorial financial measures against Cuba.

Ian McCartney: The European Commission has responsibility within the European Community for dealing with extraterritorial measures taken by third countries against EU member states. Council regulation EC2271/96 (the 'EU blocking statute') was introduced by the EU in 1996 to offer protection to EU individuals and companies against certain specific extraterritorial legislation, including the US Helms/Burton Act which applies sanctions against Cuba.
	My officials are in discussion with the European Commission in relation to recent cases of US extraterritoriality in the context of UK trade with Cuba, and the commission is considering how best to take these issues forward.

Departments: Official Hospitality

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures are in place to limit the amount of money spent on alcohol for hospitality purposes by his Department.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Heads of management units are responsible for ensuring that the principles governing hospitality and rules concerning expenditure are followed in their management units and, as is the case for all other expenditure, that an effective system is in place for dealing with claims and accounting for expenditure.
	Expenditure on alcohol at public expense is governed by the general principles of financial propriety set out in Government accounting and further guidance is set out in the Department's staff handbook.

Housing: Internet

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he is taking to ensure that  (a) existing and  (b) new housing stock has access to high speed broadband; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: The information is as follows:
	 (a) While the Government believe that the delivery of higher bandwidth broadband services is best left to the market, we are working with Ofcom and the industry-led Broadband Stakeholders Group to understand the potential barriers to further investment and how these might be addressed.
	 (b) DTI works closely with DCLG and built environment stakeholders, including English Partnerships and the Building Research Establishment, to raise awareness of the benefits and practicalities of digital connectivity. Examples of this work include the 'Data Services—Connecting to Homes' guidance for developers, currently in preparation, and the digital access provision (DAP) forum, producing best practice for digital connectivity at the earliest stages of the construction process.

Recycling

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what monitoring his Department undertakes of the eventual disposal of materials exported to China for recycling.

Ben Bradshaw: I have been asked to reply.
	There are a range of controls in place to safeguard human health and the environment from exports of waste. All exports of waste from the UK for disposal are generally prohibited. However, certain non-hazardous wastes such as paper, glass and plastic can be exported for recovery or recycling, including to China, provided the wastes are destined for genuine and environmentally sound recovery operations. It is in the Chinese authorities' interest to ensure that imported recyclables are tracked and properly processed in an environmentally sound manner.
	It is for waste producers, including local authorities and waste management contractors, to ensure that their waste is properly managed throughout the steps in the recycling chain, including at its final destination. They should assure themselves that exported waste is in compliance with the relevant environmental legislation, including that which applies to waste exports, and the duty of care. In support of this, the Environmental Services Association in the UK recently launched a compliance scheme for exports of recyclable materials, which the Government welcome. The code of practice, which is part of the scheme, includes requirements on members of the scheme to have documented control systems to demonstrate that waste recyclables are recovered under standards broadly equivalent to EU standards.
	The Environment Agency (EA) is the competent authority in England and Wales responsible for the regulation and control of transfrontier shipments of waste. The EA has a programme of inspections of sites exporting waste and has taken part in joint enforcement projects with other EU regulators as part of the Sea Ports Projects, which includes detailed monitoring of waste exports from the EU.
	In addition, in March 2005, DEFRA wrote to all waste collection and disposal authorities in England reminding them of their responsibilities regarding the export of waste to the EU and other countries.

ELECTORAL COMMISSION COMMITTEE

Ballot Papers

Kevan Jones: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what criteria were used by the Electoral Commission to select appropriate printers for their approved list to produce ballot papers for the local elections 2007.

Peter Viggers: Selection of a printer for the production of ballot papers is a responsibility of the relevant Returning Officer. The Electoral Commission informs me that it does not produce an approved list of printers, but its guidance manuals for Returning Officers offer advice on how to approach outsourcing of the production of ballot papers.

Ballot Papers: Derwentside

Kevan Jones: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission if he will place in the Library a copy of the advice issued to Derwentside district council by the Electoral Commission following the issuing of faulty ballot papers for the local elections 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Viggers: The Electoral Commission informs me that it has provided no such written advice. The Commission did, however, provide oral advice to Derwentside district council following the discovery of errors in the instruction sheets in the postal ballot packs for the 16 wards with multi-member vacancies. The Commission concurred with the council's proposed response, which was to inform immediately all electors registered as postal voters in the relevant wards, and to offer a replacement ballot pack to any who considered themselves to have been confused by the error.

Local Government: Reorganisation

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what involvement the Electoral Commission had in the recent local government restructuring proposals.

Peter Viggers: The Electoral Commission informs me that it had no involvement with the Government's original invitation to local authorities to bid for unitary status, nor with the drawing up by the Government of a shortlist of local authorities that it considered likely to meet the criteria. However, as with a number of other organisations, the Commission has since been consulted by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government over the shortlist.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Drinking Water

John Spellar: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission, how many  (a) glass and  (b) plastic bottles of water were bought by the House in 2006; and how many were returned to the supplier for re-use.

Nick Harvey: The House of Commons Refreshment Department purchases water in 500ml and one litre bottles for resale and for use in Committees and other meetings. The number of bottles purchased in the financial year 2006-07 was as follows:
	
		
			  Type of bottle  Number of bottles 
			 Glass bottles (one litre) 73,813 
			 Plastic bottles (500ml) 159,475 
		
	
	None of these bottles was returned to the supplier for re-use. They are, however, recycled and in the financial year 2006-07 the House sent 174.2 tonnes of glass and 2.7 tonnes of plastic bottles for recycling.
	Other Departments purchase 18.5 litre bottles for use in chilled water dispensing machines. These are returned to the supplier for re-use. The number purchased during 2006-07 was 651.

Portcullis House: Energy

Christopher Huhne: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission, how often Portcullis House has been assessed for its  (a) energy efficiency and  (b) carbon emissions; what the trends in performance were; what plans the Commission has to assess Portcullis House in this way; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Harvey: Portcullis House is assessed on a regular basis both for energy efficiency and carbon emissions. There is a reducing trend for both as can be seen from the following table:
	
		
			   kWh  kWh/m2  C tonnes 
			 2003-04 7,493,419 361.7 652.8 
			 2004-05 7,102,707 342.9 623.8 
			 2005-06 7,230,601 349.1 630.2 
			 2006-07 6,882,342 332.2 537.4 
		
	
	All electricity consumed on the parliamentary estate has come from renewable sources since 1 February 2007, therefore there will be no carbon emissions resulting from electricity consumption in future. This has contributed to the reduction in carbon emissions for the year 2006-07.
	The Board of Management will consider again next month whether the House should seek to achieve ISO14001 and then eco-management and audit scheme accreditation (EMAS).

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Departments: Paper

David Simpson: To ask the Leader of the House what percentage of paper used  (a) for photocopying and  (b) in printed publications by his Office was from recycled sources in each of the last three years.

Jack Straw: In the last three years, 100 per cent. of paper used by the Leader of the House of Commons Office for photocopying has been from recycled sources.
	Paper used for printed publications complies with the Government's sustainable procurement "quick wins" agenda, which states that "coated papers must contain a minimum of 60 per cent. recycled fibre and uncoated papers 100 per cent. recycled fibre". In practice most papers used comprise at least 75 per cent. recycled fibre for coated and 100 per cent. for uncoated.

Departments: Sick Leave

David Simpson: To ask the Leader of the House how many people took sick leave for stress in his Office in the last 12 months; and what percentage of the total staff number this represents.

Jack Straw: None. They all enjoy working here so much. It is a stress free environment.

TRANSPORT

Aviation

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the effect of plans by the National Air Traffic Services for new holding stacks for aircraft in relation to flights from  (a) Stansted,  (b) Luton and  (c) City airport.

Gillian Merron: No definitive plans have been submitted by NATS for new holding stacks for aircraft in relation to flights from  (a) Stansted,  (b) Luton and  (c) London City airport. Plans for such changes, following full consultation by NATS as the change sponsor, would be submitted to and assessed by the independent aviation regulator, the Civil Aviation Authority, in accordance with the Airspace Change Process:
	www.caa.co.uk/docs/33/CAP725.PDF

Aviation: Carbon Emissions

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the most recent estimate is of the percentage contribution of aviation, based on emissions by all aircraft departing from UK airports, and including the radiative forcing effect, to UK climate change emissions.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 26 April 2007
	 International aviation is not included in the UK's climate change inventory as there is no internationally agreed method for allocating such emissions among states. In 2005 aviation represented 6.3 per cent. of UK emissions, calculated as a proportion of emissions in the UK inventory plus emissions from international aviation and shipping departing the UK. Detailed data may be viewed at:
	www.defra.gov.uk/environment/statistics/index.htm.
	As the "Future of Air Transport Progress Report" (December 2006) noted, aviation emissions arising from the combustion of kerosene include carbon dioxide, water vapour, nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide, particulates and other compounds. These give rise to "radiative forcing" impacts. The total radiative impacts were estimated by the EC TRADEOFF project to be approximately twice those of carbon dioxide (excluding cirrus cloud formation).
	Using a radiative forcing multiplier of two, emissions from flights departing the UK contributed approximately 13 per cent. of total UK emissions in 2005. However, the figures for non-aviation sources do not include any radiative forcing attributable to them, as conclusive figures are not available.

Aviation: Exhaust Emissions

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his most recent estimate is of the percentage of total climate change impact from UK sources contributed by the UK aviation sector, as defined by the Transport White Paper 2004, as a result of radiative forcing; and how that estimate was derived.

Gillian Merron: I refer the hon. and learned Gentleman to the response I have given to the hon. Member for East Surrey (Mr. Ainsworth) today (UIN 134036).

Aviation: Exhaust Emissions

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the percentage contribution of aviation to the overall UK climate change impact is, calculated on the basis of emissions attributable to UK citizens on outward and return flights from UK airports, including the radiative forcing effect.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 1 May 2007
	 I refer the hon. Member to my answer given today to his related question (UIN 134036).
	There are no equivalent data which relate emissions attributable to UK citizens' travel. The Office for National Statistics International Passenger Survey provides information from surveys of overseas visits by UK residents but this information is not directly related to emissions.

Channel Tunnel Rail Link: Greater London

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what effect he expects the opening of the high speed Channel Tunnel Rail link into St. Pancras to have on capacity on the domestic network.

Tom Harris: Opening the Channel Tunnel Rail link into St. Pancras will improve the capacity of the domestic rail network by freeing up train paths used by Eurostar in South London, between Fawkham junction and Waterloo. The international platforms at Waterloo will also be available for domestic use from December 2008 and the new depot at Temple Mills will free up capacity on the west London line, previously used by Eurostar to access the international depot at North Pole. Additionally the Channel Tunnel Rail link itself will provide new capacity for high speed domestic services into London from North and East Kent, which are expected to be introduced in 2009.

Crossrail: Finance

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what shortfall in funding exists between current financial provision for Crossrail and actual project costs;
	(2)  when his Department plans to submit its final proposal to HM Treasury for the funding of Crossrail.

Tom Harris: The Crossrail project has been allocated a total of £408 million in funding to date, including an additional £154 million that has been recently agreed for ongoing project development. The full cost of the project is projected to be around £15-16 billion in cash prices.
	The Department has regular discussions with HM Treasury on many matters. This includes the funding and financing of Crossrail, which will be considered further in the context of Sir Michael Lyon's recommendations on local government finances and wider spending pressures and priorities. However, the affordability challenge represented by the scheme remains significant.

Departments: India

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which Ministers in his Department have visited India in the last 12 months; on how many occasions each Minister visited India; and what the length was of each visit.

Gillian Merron: This Government publish an annual list of Cabinet Ministers' travel overseas costing over £500 along with the total cost of all ministerial travel. Information for 2005-06 was published on 24 July 2006 and is available in the Library of the House. Information for 2006-07 will be published as soon as it is ready.
	All travel is in accordance with the Ministerial Code and Travel by Ministers.
	None of my ministerial colleagues from the Department for Transport have visited India in the last 12 months.

Departments: Paper

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what percentage of paper used  (a) for photocopying and  (b) in printed publications by his Department was from recycled sources in each of the last three years.

Gillian Merron: The following tables show the percentage of paper containing recycled content used in each of the last three years:
	
		
			  Percentage of photocopier paper with recycled content 
			   2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 DfT(C) 98.01 95.48 95.19 
			 DVLA 100 100 100 
			 DSA 98 98.5 97 
			 GCDA 100 100 100 
			 HA 100 100 100 
			 MCA 80 80 80 
			 VCA 100 100 100 
			 VOSA 74 77 77 
		
	
	
		
			  Percentage of paper with recycled content used in printed publications 
			   2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 DfT(C) 100 100 100 
			 DVLA 91 73 64 
			 DSA 100 100 100 
			 GCDA 95 95 95 
			 HA 100 100 100 
			 MCA 70 70 70 
			 VCA 90 90 90 
			 VOSA(1) 75 75 75 
			 (1) VOSA priced publications are counted separately using paper which does not include recycled content.

Departments: Renewable Energy

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much energy in kilowatt hours was purchased by his Department from renewable sources in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Gillian Merron: The Department purchased 36,615,981 kilowatt hours of energy from renewable sources in financial year 2005-06.

East Coast Main Line: Standards

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what performance measures his Department has in place to monitor the quality of service provided on the East Coast Mainline.

Tom Harris: GNER measures service quality in terms of both train punctuality and also areas such as train cleanliness, station condition and customer service. Punctuality is monitored on a daily basis by Network Rail, with statistics published by the Office of Rail Regulation. Other areas are audited by GNER and the results reviewed by the Department against Key Performance Benchmarks set for the franchise. The Department also takes note of National Passenger Survey results in order to be assured that GNER service quality to the rail traveller is maintained.

Exhaust Emissions

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether bids to the Transport Innovation Fund will be assessed on their potential contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions as well as their effectiveness in reducing congestion.

Stephen Ladyman: The environmental impacts of Transport Innovation Fund proposals, including carbon dioxide emissions, will be considered as part of the assessment of TIF bids.

Parking: Fixed Penalties

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the implications of the recent High Court judgment on the issuing of parking tickets by post in London for the extension of the postal penalty notice system throughout the UK.

Gillian Merron: Although the official transcript of the judgment in TfL  v. PATAS (interested party—Simeon Ademolake) is not yet available, the Secretary of State is considering the amendments that could be made to the wording of the draft regulations to implement the parking provisions in Part 6 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 to cover such a situation.

Petrol: Silicon

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will seek to establish a British Standard for the amount of silicon included in unleaded petroleum; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: There is no reason to expect a repeat of the recent incident in which fuel was contaminated with silicon. However we will be asking the British Standards Institution to consider, in concert with its European partners, whether revision of EN228, which is the industry standard for premium unleaded petrol, would be appropriate.

Railways: Energy

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the relative energy consumption of trains at different speeds.

Tom Harris: The Department is involved in several research projects assessing how trains use energy. In particular this includes a project commissioned by the Rail Safety and Standards Board into rail traction energy which will compare the energy consumption of different train types that operate at different speeds. I expect the results to be published in the summer.

Railways: Overcrowding

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent research he has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated on the degree of overcrowding on UK trains and the resultant effects on those passengers involved; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Harris: In 2005 the Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) published a report entitled "The health and safety effects of crowding", which is available on its website, rssb.co.uk. The Office of Rail Regulation's Railway Industry Advisory Committee asked RSSB to consider further the issues identified in the report and this work is under way.

Railways: Wales

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what proportion of train stations in Wales have manned ticket kiosks; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what proportion of train stations in Wales have automated ticket machines; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Harris: All railway stations in Wales are operated by Arriva Trains Wales ('ATW'). Under the Welsh rail devolution arrangements, the Welsh Assembly Government are responsible for the management of the ATW franchise.

Railways: Wales

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many ticket inspectors were operating on Welsh railway lines in each year since 1992; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Harris: The information requested could not be provided without disproportionate cost.

Railways: Wales

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  how many train stations in Wales have manned ticket kiosks; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many train stations in Wales have automated ticket machines installed; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Harris: All railway stations in Wales are operated by Arriva Trains Wales ('ATW'). Under the Welsh rail devolution arrangements, the Welsh Assembly Government are responsible for the management of the ATW franchise.

Railways: Wales

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many train carriages were in use by train operating companies on railway lines in Wales in each year since 1992; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Harris: The information requested could not be provided without disproportionate cost.

Railways: Wales

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many rail passengers there were in Wales in each year since 1992; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Harris: Statistics on number of passengers on the railway network for 2003-04 and 2004-05 are published by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) in the National Rail Trends Yearbook editions, which are available in the House Library or from their website: www.rail-reg.gov.uk. Figures for earlier years are not held by the Department in the form requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Roads: Construction

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what provisions there are in the transport analysis guidance rules for taking tax implications of new road plans into account.

Stephen Ladyman: The Department requires an appraisal of the impact of a proposal on public accounts. The relevant guidance document is Transport Analysis Guidance (TAG) Unit 3.5.1, available at www.webtag.org.uk, with more technical detail contained in TAG Unit 3.5.3.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much central Government funding has been allocated to  (a) Suffolk County Council and  (b) each local authority for road improvements in each year since 1997.

Gillian Merron: The Department placed in the Library of the House detailed information on the funding allocated to local authorities in the local transport capital settlements between 1997-98 and 2005-06 (inclusive) in response to a written parliamentary question in the other place on the 18 January 2006,  Official Report, House of Lords, column WA122. Similar information was summarised per mile of road in a written response in the other place on 2 February 2006,  Official Report, House of Lords columns WA77-79.
	I also refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer of 22 March 2007,  Official Report, columns 7048-50W, which provided further details of the capital funding provision for Suffolk and a number of other authorities in the Eastern Region.
	The local transport capital settlement allocations for all transport authorities in England for 2006-07 are posted on the Department's website:
	www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/ltp/capital/ltpdec2005
	Those for 2007-08 are posted on the site too:
	www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/ltp/capital/ltpsettle06/allocationspreadsheet

Rolling Stock: Bedfordshire

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  when his Department expects additional rolling stock to be provided for train services between Bedfordshire and London; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what plans his Department has to increase capacity on train services between Bedfordshire and London; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what representations he has received on proposals to provide additional rolling stock on train services between Bedfordshire and London; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Harris: This summer, the Government will be publishing their High Level Output Specification (HLOS) for rail services for the period to 2014. This HLOS will include the specification for capacity on the three main routes that serve Bedfordshire—the East Coast, West Coast and Midland main lines.

Traffic Lights

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will investigate the effect on the flow of traffic of a flashing yellow traffic light during off-peak hours.

Gillian Merron: The Department has no plans to consider adopting flashing yellow traffic signals during off-peak hours. Removing the protection afforded by a red signal leads to concerns for the safety of pedestrians, especially blind or partially sighted pedestrians. The preferred method is for more traffic responsive operation of traffic signals which should lead to reductions in unnecessary delays.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Community Support Officers: Great Yarmouth

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many police community support officers have been stationed in Great Yarmouth since 1997;
	(2)  how many police officers have been stationed in Great Yarmouth in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: Data are not collected for the borough of Great Yarmouth; the available data for the requested dates are for the Norfolk police force, and are given in table 1.
	Additionally, data are collected for the Eastern Basic Command Unit (BCU) of Norfolk police which contains North Norfolk and Great Yarmouth. These data are available for police officers from 2003 onwards, and are given in table 2; and for police community support officers from 2005 onwards, and are given in table 3.
	Police strength data are published annually in the Home Office Statistical Bulletin series "Police Service Strength, England and Wales". The latest publication (data as at 31 March 2006) can be downloaded from:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb1306.pdf
	
		
			  Table 1: police officer and police community support officer strength( 1)  (FTE) by Norfolk police force as at 31 March 1997 to 31 March 2006( 2) 
			  Norfolk 
			  31 March:  Police Officers( 3)  PCSOs( 4) 
			 1997 1,432 n/a 
			 1998 1,430 n/a 
			 1999 1,381 n/a 
			 2000 1,381 n/a 
			 2001 1,420 n/a 
			 2002 1,468 n/a 
			 2003 1,499 12 
			 2004 1,510 33 
			 2005 1,544 68 
			 2006 1,557 65 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. (2) Police community support officers were introduced in statute in 2002, therefore data are not available prior to 2002-03. (3) Full-time equivalent excludes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave (comparable with earlier years figures). (4) Full-time equivalent includes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: police officer strength( 1)  (FTE) by Eastern Basic Command Unit of Norfolk police force as at 31 March 2003 to 31 March 2006( 2) 
			  Eastern BCU 
			  31 March:  Police officers( 3) 
			 2003 384 
			 2004 389 
			 2005 377 
			 2006 381 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. (2) Police community support officers were introduced in statute in 2002, therefore data are not available prior to 2002-03. (3) Full-time equivalent includes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: police community support officer strength( 1)  (FTE) by Eastern Basic Command Unit of Norfolk police force as at 30 June 2005 to 30 June 2006( 2) 
			  Eastern BCU 
			   PCSOs 
			 30 June 2005 24 
			 30 June 2006 39 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. (2) This collection was undertaken by the Home Office Police Human Resources Unit and does not form part of the "Police Service Strength" statistical series.

Custodial Treatment: Courts

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions (defined as one prisoner night) prisoners were housed in court cells between 1 January 2006 and 1 April 2007.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Court cells were used on 33 occasions between 1 January 2006 and 1 April 2007.

Drugs: Crime

Alan Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his estimate is of the number and proportion of offences that were drug-related in  (a) Darlington,  (b) County Durham and  (c) England in each of the last five years.

Vernon Coaker: The information requested is not available. Data collected centrally on recorded crime do not identify whether any offences (other than drug offences as defined by law) are drug related. The recorded crime series does include the number of specific drug offences and these are given in the following table.
	
		
			  Table 1: drug offences recorded by the police 2001-02 
			   Number of offences 
			 Darlington 229 
			 Durham 1,317 
			 England 111,968 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: drug offences recorded by the police—2002-03 to 2005-06 
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 Darlington 211 220 230 302 
			 Durham 1,289 1,205 1,062 1,299 
			 England 130,825 131,551 133,140 165,842 
			  Note: The National Crime Recording Standard was introduced in April 2002. Figures before and after that date are not directly comparable.

Extradition

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give details of each extradition request by a foreign Government which has been  (a) granted and  (b) refused in each of the last five years.

Joan Ryan: For the purposes of this reply a copy of the table has been placed in the Library. The table has assumed that the details required in the question are the requesting country and the year of extradition, or the year in which the case was closed for other reasons. The figures exclude:
	(i) any requests which may have been closed before arrests for extradition took place;
	(ii) any requests made to Scotland or Northern Ireland, which are matters for the Scotland Office and Northern Ireland Office respectively; and
	(iii) any requests made under the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) mechanism as these are made by the judicial authorities of other European Union member states rather than by foreign governments.
	European Union member states entered the EAW on the following dates:
	1 January 2004—Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom;
	27 July 2004—Austria, Cyprus, France, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta. Netherlands, Poland, Slovenia;
	1 March 2005—Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Slovakia; and
	28 July 2005—Italy.
	Finally, it should be noted that the requests to which the figures relate will in many cases have been made in earlier years than those in which the resulting extraditions took place or in which the cases were closed.

HM Prison Coldingley

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the recovery of  (a) drugs and  (b) pornographic material at HM Prison Coldingley earlier this month; what estimate he has made of the street value of the recovery of each; what mechanism was used in the transportation of this contraband into the prison establishment; what steps he plans to take to tighten (i) searching and (ii) monitoring arrangements at the prison establishment; and what assessment he has made of the (A) competency of staff and (B) adequacy of resources in the security department at the prison establishment in preventing contraband from being transported into the establishment.

Gerry Sutcliffe: On 15 March a quantity of drugs, mobile phones and DVDs were found following an intelligence led search. This find was as a result of a joint operation with Surrey police. The police estimate the street price of the drugs at £6,000 to £7,000. The staff involved in this operation have been commended for their actions and the resources available to ensure a positive response to the supply of controlled drugs are kept under review. For reasons of security, and to maximise the possibility of future finds, it would not be appropriate to comment further.

Identity Cards: Fraud

Linda Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of companies advertising and selling fake identity cards over the internet; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: The Government are aware that there are certain websites which offer to sell fake identity cards, and that there is a concern that young people may try and use them to purchase alcohol unlawfully. It is, of course, illegal to sell alcohol to under-18s. It is the responsibility of retailers to have adequate procedures in place and appropriate training for staff, if they wish to have a licence to sell alcohol.
	Many retailers have now adopted a 'Think 21' policy, where anyone appearing to be under 21 should be asked for identification prior to any sale of alcohol, which will prevent an offence being committed. Valid forms of identification include a passport or a driving licence with a photo. The Home Office also supports the Proof of Age Standards (PASS) scheme, which establishes a common standard for issuing the various proof of age cards that are available. PASS accredited cards carry a secure hologram which helps retailers to identify genuine proof of age cards. Following on from the success of the Alcohol Misuse Enforcement Campaigns, in May 2007 we will be conducting a national Tackling Under Age Sales of Alcohol Campaign, which will test whether or not retailers ask for valid identification from potential underage purchasers of alcohol.

Naturalisation Test

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what percentage of people were successful in the Life in the UK naturalisation test in each month since November 2005.

John Reid: The number and percentage of candidates who have been successful in the Life in the UK test in each month since November 2005 is set out in the table.
	Success in the test does not guarantee that an applicant will be granted citizenship (or, from 2 April 2007, settlement) as other factors will be taken into account in making a decision.
	
		
			   Passes  Pass rate (percentage) 
			 November 2005 2,066 72.7 
			 December 2005 2,926 69.0 
			 January 2006 5,042 69.2 
			 February 2006 6,933 70.1 
			 March 2006 8,781 69.1 
			 April 2006 7,526 69.2 
			 May 2006 8,436 67.9 
			 June 2006 8,575 67.3 
			 July 2006 8,527 67.4 
			 August 2006 9,417 67.9 
			 September 2006 11,764 67.1 
			 October 2006 11,501 66.7 
			 November 2006 10,856 66.1 
			 December 2006 8,055 65.8 
			 January 2007 11,754 67.8 
			 February 2007 14,282 70.0 
			
			 Total since November 2005 136,441 68.0

Offenders: Employment

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the  (a) number and  (b) proportion of (i) men and (ii) women leaving prison who had a job to go to; and what the equivalent figures were (A) 10 and (B) 20 years ago.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information is not currently available in the specific format requested. HM Prison Service collects the total number of prisoners who have education, training or employment (ETE) secured upon release. This data are supplied in the following table for the last two financial years, broken down by gender, along with the prison system target for this measure. ETE information was not collected in the current format before April 2002.
	
		
			  Total ETE outcomes for 2005 - 06 and 2006 - 07 
			   Total ETE outcomes  System ETE target 
			   Female  Male  Total  
			 2005-06 1804 41074.5 42878.5  
			 2006-07(1) 1642.5 3724405 38887  
			 (1)( )Data for 2006-07 are provisional 
		
	
	Outcomes include those who attended Freshstart appointments at Jobcentre Plus, whereby prisoners who do not have a job or training place to go to on release are linked into employment, training and benefits advice and support immediately after release.
	Freshstart interview attendance data for February and March 2007 have not yet been received.
	HM Prison Service is implementing new systems to ensure the specific information requested is available for the 2007-08 financial year.

Offenders: Employment

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of  (a) the re-offending rates of those who find a job on leaving prison and  (b) those who do not.

Gerry Sutcliffe: No assessment has been made to date of the re-offending rates of those who find a job on leaving prison or of those who do not have a job on release. However, work is currently underway to analyse the findings of three resettlement surveys of prisoners conducted at the point of release and this will provide such an assessment. Findings from this work should be available by the autumn of 2007 and published on the RDS NOMS website.

Prison Service: Corruption

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the value of fraudulent expense claims made by HM Prison Service staff in each of the last 24 months for which figures are available; what disciplinary action was taken against individuals involved; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: During the 24 months to 31 March 2007, there were seven cases of fraudulent expense claims formally investigated, detailed in the table
	 Fraudulent Expense Claims
	During the 24 months to 31 March 2007, there were 7 cases of fraudulent expense claims formally investigated, detailed in the table below.
	
		
			  Month  Number of cases  Amount Investigated (£)  Disciplinary outcome 
			 April 2005 1 69.05 Dismissal 
			 February 2006 2 1,967.95 2 Resignations 
			 July 2006 2 677.00 1 Written warning 1 Dismissal 
			 October 2006 1 195.50 Final written warning 
			 March 2007 1 1,972.11 Disciplinary hearing being conducted

Prison Service: Standards

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 1 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1520W, on prison service: standards, how many  (a) area professional standards managers,  (b) local professional standards managers and  (c) their deputies are in post; what proportion of them were fully trained by February; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: 13 area professional standards managers and 128 local professional standards managers were in post in February 2007. It is not mandatory to appoint a deputy local professional standards manager, although many establishments have a deputy in post. By February 2007 all 13 area professional standards managers had received training along with 216 prison staff.

Prison Service: Standards

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 1 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1520W, on prison service: standards, in what circumstances an HM Prison Service commissioning officer may withhold  (a) the investigation report and  (b) parts of the investigation report from an individual being charged under the disciplinary code; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The commissioning authority may withhold all or part of a report if disclosure to an individual facing allegations under the code of discipline is considered to threaten the safety of staff or prisoners, or the good order of an establishment. The specific circumstances under which a report, or part of a report, may be withheld are listed in PSO 1300 Investigations paragraph 3D 8.1.

Prisoners: Medical Treatments

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the average waiting time between assessment of a prisoner and subsequent transfer to a hospital for physical or mental care.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information requested is not collected centrally.
	Prisoners who are assessed as requiring treatment in hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983 should be so transferred within 12 weeks of the responsible national health service organisation receiving the referral. A reduced waiting time standard of two weeks is currently being piloted.
	For hospital appointments, Prison Service Order 3050, continuity of care for prisoners, sets out what prison governors must do to ensure prisoners receive timely clinical interventions and treatment. A copy has been placed in the Library. It is also available on the HM Prison Service website at:
	http://pso.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/PSO_3050_continuity_of_healthcare_for_prisoners.doc

Prisons: Greater London

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many complaints have been received by the new London area manager of HM Prison Service from staff about  (a) corruption,  (b) misconduct and  (c) management failure; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The area manager for London has received three complaints from staff about alleged managerial failures since taking up post.

Prisons: Misconduct

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the conclusions of the inquiry into misconduct of senior officers in the segregation unit at HM Prison Wormwood Scrubs were considered during the process of appointing the new governor at HM Prison Whitemoor; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The conclusions of the inquiry into the misconduct of senior officers in the segregation unit at HM Prison Wormwood Scrubs were not considered during the process of appointing the Governor of HM Prison Whitemoor.

Prisons: Security

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what resources he has made available to each  (a) prison establishment and  (b) the Professional Standards Unit to reduce the level of trafficking of contraband in the financial year 2007-08; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: There are 13 Area Professional Standards Managers, 128 Local Professional Standards Managers, a central Professional Standards Unit of 13 staff. In addition, there are ongoing developments to the types of equipment and training available to staff to detect contraband or improve the use of intelligence.

Prisons: Security

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the  (a) competency and experience of staff and  (b) adequacy of resources of security departments within prison establishments in the (i) prevention and (ii) detection of contraband; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: It is the responsibility of HM Prison Service (for public sector prisons) and individual providers (for contracted sector prisons) to ensure that security departments are appropriately staffed and operate effectively. It is the responsibility of the National Offender Management Service to monitor the performance of providers (both contracted and public sector) and to ensure that this is acceptable across all areas of work involving security.

Prisons: Surveillance

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average number of Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act  (a) requests and  (b) authorisations was in each prison establishment in England and Wales per week for targeted surveillance of (i) social visits and (ii) other activity in each of the last two years; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: For operational security reasons, it would be inappropriate to provide the information requested.

Rape: Convictions

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what the conviction rate was for rape cases in 2006;
	(2)  how many rape prosecutions where DNA or other forensic evidence was used led to  (a) a conviction and  (b) an acquittal in each of the last three years.

John Reid: Court proceedings (including rape convictions) for 2006 will be available in the autumn of 2007.
	Information on whether DNA evidence was used to bring about a conviction to court is not available as the individual circumstance of a case are not held centrally.

Tasker Inquiry

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions the terms of reference of the Tasker inquiry have been  (a) amended and  (b) altered; how many interim reports have been produced during the lifetime of the inquiry; when the most recent interim report was produced; what the reason is for the most recent delay to the completion of the inquiry; how many extensions to the inquiry have been authorised; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The commissioning authority has formally amended the terms of reference once, at the request of one of the complainants.
	No interim reports have been published. A partial report has been submitted to the commissioning authority. The delay in completion of the investigation has been caused by the breadth of the terms of reference, and the scale and complexity of the ensuing investigation.
	No formal extensions have been granted. The commissioning authority has been kept informed of the progress of the investigation throughout, and has accepted the revised timeframe.

Tasker Inquiry

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the  (a) target completion date was when first commissioned and  (b) actual completion date is expected to be of the Tasker inquiry; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The initial target date for completion was March 2006. This proved to be unrealistic given the scale of the investigation, and the investigation is now due to be completed in the near future.

Tasker Inquiry

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which member of HM Prison Service Board will have responsibility for  (a) considering the content,  (b) overseeing appropriate disciplinary action and  (c) addressing the issues that may arise from the report by Mr Ron Tasker into the conduct of the previous Governor at HM Prison Wandsworth; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Prison Service area manager for London is the commissioning authority and as such will have responsibility for considering the content of the report, overseeing any disciplinary action that may be deemed necessary, and addressing any other issues that may arise. The area manager for London may seek to discuss these matters with his line manager who is the Deputy Director General of the Prison Service.

Terrorism: Birmingham

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether an individual in his Department was responsible for briefing journalists that two soldiers had offered to entrap the suspects at the centre of the Birmingham counter-terrorism operation of 31 January.

John Reid: I have no knowledge of who provided this information. It was not released by me, nor my special advisers nor anyone close to me, nor anyone else with either my knowledge or acquiescence.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Council Tax Benefits: Greater London

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much council tax benefit was unclaimed in each London borough in each of the last five years.

James Plaskitt: Estimates of take-up are not available below the level of Great Britain. The latest estimates of the take-up of the main income-related benefits: income support, pension credit, housing benefit, council tax benefit and jobseeker's allowance (income-based) in Great Britain can be found in the DWP report entitled "Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take-Up in 2004/2005". Copies of the publication are available in the Library.

Departments: Handbooks

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 20 February 2007,  Official Report, column 630W, on departments: handbooks, if he will place in the Library a CD-Rom containing the details of the terms and conditions of service for staff of his Department.

Anne McGuire: Development of Conditions of Service policies in DWP is a continuous evolutionary process. A number of the corporate policies also take the form of policy frameworks, stating broad principles within which individual DWP businesses are permitted to develop their own Conditions of Service policies according to the services they deliver.
	The effect of this is that a CD-Rom of the Conditions of Service material would only be accurate, relevant and up-to-date on the day it was created, and would not have the functionality to link to other sources of information referred to within the policy material or to business specific policy material.
	Therefore while there are no plans to place a CD-ROM in the Library Members who want access to specific Conditions of Service policies should contact:
	Kevin White, DWP's Human Resources Director General about corporate policies or the relevant business Chief Executive in constituent specific cases, and request a CD-ROM of the specific policy material.

Departments: India

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which Ministers in his Department have visited India in the last 12 months; on how many occasions each Minister visited India; and what the length was of each visit.

Anne McGuire: There were no visits made by any of the Department's Ministers to India in the last 12 months.

Departments: Intimidation

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints of bullying have been investigated in his Department in the last 12 months; and how many complaints have been upheld.

Anne McGuire: The information currently held centrally by the Department is the number of complaints of bullying investigated by the Departments central team of investigators.
	During the last 12 months (for the period April 2006 to March 2007) the Department for Work and Pensions central team of investigators has received 102 complaints of bullying of which 32 were upheld.

Departments: Renewable Energy

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much energy in kilowatt hours was purchased by his Department from renewable sources in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Anne McGuire: On 12 June 2006 the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs announced a set of sustainable operations targets for the Government Estate. These targets included mandating Government Departments to source at least 10 per cent. of electricity from renewable sources, such as wind, wave, tidal, solar, thermal and photovoltaics (PVs), by March 2008.
	During 2005-06 DWP sourced 206,087,269 kilowatt hours of electricity from renewable sources. This equates to 62.9 per cent. of the total DWP consumption of 327,460,763 kilowatt hours of electricity during the year.

Departments: Sexual Harassment

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints of sexual harassment have been investigated in his Department in the last 12 months; and how many complaints have been upheld.

Anne McGuire: The information currently held centrally by the Department is the number of complaints of sexual harassment investigated by the Department's central team of investigators.
	During the last 12 months (for the period April 2006 to March 2007) the Department for Work and Pensions central team of investigators has received 20 complaints of sexual harassment of which 13 were upheld.

Departments: Statistics

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much the quarterly statistical summary costs to produce in each of the last four quarters.

Anne McGuire: Information on the cost of producing the quarterly statistical summary is not available.
	Estimates for the annual costs of national statistics are contained in the relevant national statistics annual report and accounts, which are available on the national statistics website at:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=1051.
	The last year these were produced was 2004-05.

Departments: Surveys

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place in the Library the results of each staff survey in his Department in each of the last five years.

Anne McGuire: Over the last five years, DWP has routinely published its staff survey results within the public domain. Survey results have been supplied to main Libraries in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as well as those in Oxford and Cambridge. Last year, following a request from Nicola Beckford, BBC Political Programmes, Cabinet Office arranged for direct access to all main Government Departments' survey results through the civil service website. DWP Survey 2004 and 2005 results can already be accessed there. Results for DWP Survey 2006 will also appear there shortly. In addition, DWP is making separate arrangements to place its staff survey results, since 2002, on the DWP website.

Grandparents: Parental Responsibility

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 20 April 2007,  Official Report, column 866W, on grandparents: parental responsibility, for what reasons the information is not available; and if he will take steps to make it available.

James Plaskitt: Information about the family relationship between a claimant and any dependant children is not needed for the assessment of income-related benefit claims, so it is not recorded. We have no plans to change this.

Housing Benefit: Homelessness

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 26 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1180W, on housing benefit, what amendments were made to his proposed changes to the housing benefit subsidy arrangements for homeless households following his Department's meetings with the local authority associations in August, November and December 2006 and January 2007.

James Plaskitt: The changes were a short-term measure to address the very large increase in expenditure on temporary accommodation and longer term proposals to change the funding scheme for temporary accommodation in the future. No amendments were made to the changes after meeting with Local Authority Associations.

Housing Benefit: Temporary Accommodation

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 26 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1238W, on housing benefit, what the average cost was of non-housing revenue account expenditure on each homeless household in temporary accommodation in each year since 1997-98  (a) in cash terms and  (b) at 2006-07 prices.

James Plaskitt: The information is not available.

IT Projects

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham of 26 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1239W, on IT projects, what the purpose was of the benefits processing replacement programme (BPRP); how it was related to the customer accounting and payment strategy; and through what new programme he expects some of the spend on the BPRP to be of future value.

Anne McGuire: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Gentleman with the information requested.
	 Letter from Lesley Strathie, dated 2 May 2007
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about the benefits processing replacement programme (BPRP) and the customer accounting and payment strategy (CAPS). This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	BPRP was launched in November 2004 to develop a replacement for our legacy IT systems, which calculate benefit payments in Jobcentre Plus and the Disability and Carers Service. CAPS was a much earlier Departmental IT programme with the aim of developing and implementing a replacement for the order book payment system. This would have provided customers with a single payment account and a smart card to access their benefit payments through the Post Office network. There is no connection between the two programmes.
	We expect that a substantial part of the investment in BPRP will be of future benefit to the Department. For example, software licences and a testing and development environment have already been of benefit to other IT projects in Jobcentre Plus, and will be of use as we develop IT support for the employment and support allowance. Additionally, some of the planning and design work undertaken by BPRP will be of value to Jobcentre Plus in taking forward our IT Strategy.
	I hope this is helpful.

Members: Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he expects to reply to the letter of 13 March from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire on the Disability Discrimination Act.

Anne McGuire: holding answer 30 April 2007
	I replied to the hon. Gentleman's letter on 26 April 2007.

New Deal Schemes: Self-employed

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what projection he has made of the number of people likely to go through the new deal self-employment programme in the next 12 months; and how many went through it in each of the last three years;
	(2)  what the cost is to the public purse of an unemployed person returning to work under  (a) the new deal self-employment programme and  (b) other employment programmes.

Anne Snelgrove: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people completed the new deal self-employment programme in the last three years for which figures are available.

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people are expected to participate in the new deal self-employment programme in 2007-08; and how many people participated in the programme in each of the last three years;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the cost to the public purse for an unemployed person to return to work under the new deal self-employment programme compared with other employment programmes;
	(3)  whether his Department has assessed the relative rates at which participants return to work under the new deal self-employment programme compared with other employment programmes.

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people are expected to pass through the new deal self-employment programme in 2007; and what the figure was in each of the last three years;
	(2)  what assessment his Department has made of the relative merits of returning to work under the new deal self-employment programme compared with other employment programmes.

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the relative benefits to  (a) Government and  (b) unemployed people of returning to work under the new deal self-employment programme and other employment programmes;
	(2)  how many people he expects to go through the new deal self-employment programme in 2007-08; and how many went through in each of the previous three years;
	(3)  how much it costs the public purse on average for an unemployed person to return to work under  (a) the new deal self-employment programme and  (b) other employment programmes.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of an unemployed person returning to work under  (a) the new deal self-employment programme and  (b) other employment programmes;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of people likely to go through the new deal self-employment programme in 2007; and how many went through the programme in each of the last three years;
	(3)  whether his Department has assessed the relative effectiveness of returning to work under the new deal self-employment programme and other employment programmes.

Charles Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  whether he has estimated the cost to the public purse of assisting an unemployed person to return to work under the  (a) new deal self-employment programme and  (b) other employment programmes;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of people likely to participate in the new deal self-employment programme in the next 12 months; and how many people participated in each of the previous three years.

Eric Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the new deal self-employment programme at returning people to work compared with other employment programmes.

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the new deal self-employment programme; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Murphy: I refer the hon. Members to the written answer I gave on 23 March 2007,  Official Report, columns 1184-86W.

Personal Capability Assessments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 7 February 2007,  Official Report, column 1056W, on personal capability assessments, who owns the LiMA software.

Jim Murphy: The Logic integrated Medical Assessment (LiMA) computer program is used by Atos Origin Medical Services and supports doctors carrying out disability assessments on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions. The DWP hold copyright and intellectual property rights over the program and license a third party—Atos Origin Medical Services—to use, customise, distribute, incorporate, market, maintain, support, sell and sub-license LiMA in return for payment of a royalty to the DWP.

Social Security Benefits

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what support his Department plans to provide to  (a) A2 and (b) A8 nationals in 2007-08; and what the estimated cost is of providing this support.

Jim Murphy: For details of the support available to A2 and A8 nationals, I refer the hon. Gentleman to the written answer given on 13 March 2007,  Official Report, column 274W.
	The information on cost is not available.

Social Security Benefits: Correspondence

Frank Cook: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many mail items were sent by those bodies that award  (a) pension credit,  (b) housing benefit,  (c) income support,  (d) jobseeker's allowance,  (e) incapacity benefit,  (f) council tax benefit and  (g) state pension for each of the last five years; how many of these were sent to deceased individuals; what arrangements are in place to ensure that the databases of these organisations are updated with details of individuals who have moved house; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: Information requested is listed in the following table. Housing and council tax benefit are awarded by the claimant's local authority and therefore, are not included in the table. The information is extracted from management information held by the Department's two Regional Delivery Centres and does not include numbers of mail items sent from the Department's local offices about these benefits as this information is not held centrally and could be obtained only by disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Volume  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			  (a) Pension credit 3,053,168 9,601,349 16,826,461 14,595,985 11,694,195 
			  (c) Income support 40,579,060 36,211,335 25,970,123 21,882,796 21,575,397 
			  (d) Jobseeker's allowance 36,731,443 33,285,018 26,238,083 19,584,809 19,806,068 
			  (e) Incapacity benefit 15,082,958 12,306,938 11,357,700 9,214,905 9,860,895 
			  (g) State pension 26,305,633 25,399,385 24,973,194 19,251,923 26,755,872 
		
	
	The information about how many mail items were sent to deceased individuals is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The Department has processes in place to collect death notifications from the Office for National Statistics (for England and Wales), the General Registrar (Scotland) and the General Registrar (Northern Ireland) on a weekly basis in order to update records. However, many notifications are received from the next of kin in advance of the notification from the Registrars. As part of the Office for National Statistics Modernisation Programme, dates of death will be notified to the Department on a daily basis from March 2008 which should ensure the level of notifications sent to deceased individuals by the Department is minimised.
	The Department received over 18.5 million notifications of change of address in 2006, relating to the actual number of individuals who have moved. For example if a family consisting of man, wife and two children changed address, we would expect to receive four changes to personal details, if the children were the subjects of a child benefit claim. Every effort is made to ensure databases are updated with change of address details as soon as they are received.

Temporary Accommodation

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 23 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1180W, on housing benefit: homelessness, if his Department will require local authorities to increase their General Fund contribution to the costs of placing homeless households in temporary accommodation.

James Plaskitt: There is no requirement for local authorities to increase the contribution from the General Fund when placing homeless households in temporary accommodation.

Temporary Accommodation: Greater London

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 23 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1180W, on housing benefit: homelessness, whether his Department has assessed Westminster city council's ability to procure short-term leased temporary accommodation for homeless households within its area following the introduction of his proposed changes to housing benefit subsidy arrangements in 2007-08.

James Plaskitt: No assessment was done of the procurement of short term leased accommodation in Westminster city council's area. The changes introduced in April 2007 to the subsidy scheme for temporary accommodation were a modest reduction in the available subsidy and should not have an impact on an authority's ability to secure temporary accommodation.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Arts: Grants

Stephen Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking through the spending review to improve provisions for the arts in Northern Ireland following the reduction in Lottery funding from 2009.

Maria Eagle: Negotiations on the comprehensive spending review are at an early stage. The outcome will be known later this year.

Departments: Public Expenditure

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what in-year financial monitoring returns and adjustments for the Northern Ireland departments were made in 2006-07; and what  (a) slippages,  (b) easements and  (c) pressures identified and re-allocations have been made.

David Hanson: The information requested has been placed in the Library of the House.

Health Professions: Training

Julie Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many applicants in Northern Ireland are in the process of applying for posts via modernising medical careers; how many posts are available in Northern Ireland; and how many such posts in the 2007 round are for  (a) specialist training and  (b) fixed-term specialist training appointments.

Paul Goggins: Current figures show that there have been 2,559 applications for posts in Northern Ireland. Many applicants have applied for more than one post A detailed breakdown of applications per applicant is not currently available.
	By August 2007 there will be:
	 (a) 406 Specialist training posts; and
	 (b) 211 Fixed term specialist training posts.

Hospitals: Hygiene

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 23 April 2007,  Official Report, columns 891-92W, on hospitals: hygiene, how much of the £400,000 funding provided in 2006-07 each hospital trust in Northern Ireland accessed to run hand hygiene/clean care campaigns; what the nature was of each campaign; and what assessment has been made of their effectiveness.

Paul Goggins: I have placed a detailed report on the matter raised by the hon. Gentleman in the Library.

Housing: Low Incomes

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking to provide affordable housing in Northern Ireland.

David Hanson: Government are dealing with the issue of affordable housing principally through the social housing development programme, the co-ownership shared equity scheme, the house sales scheme for social tenants and the housing benefit system.
	The social housing development programme last year provided an additional 1,625 new homes, funded by Government grant of some £132 million supplemented by housing association private borrowing.
	The co-ownership shared equity scheme has assisted almost 19,000 households into home ownership since 1978; with more than half a billion pounds of public and private funds invested. Recent changes, such as increasing the property value limits and reducing the rental charge on the shared equity portion of the property, have made the scheme more accessible for those on low incomes.
	The right to buy scheme, offering social houses for sale to tenants at a discount, has facilitated some 120,000 tenants into home ownership.
	Last year, over £386 million was paid to those in receipt of housing benefit. Over 70,000 of recipients were in social housing and almost 62,000 were in private housing.
	In April 2007, I received Sir John Semple's review into affordable housing. This report made a series of practical suggestions across a range of policy areas. These proposals are now being considered.

Junior Doctors: Unemployment

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the number of junior doctors working in the NHS in Northern Ireland who will be unemployed in August.

Paul Goggins: It is not possible to determine at this stage how many doctors working in Northern Ireland will not obtain post in NI.

Junior Doctors: Working Hours

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what funding was available before August 2006 for the provision of additional doctors to ensure that junior doctors' working rotas would be compliant with the European Working Time Directive.

Paul Goggins: In 2006-07 the Department allocated funding to the Junior Doctors Implementation Support Group (ISG). ISG assigned £5.5 million of this budget to assist Boards and HPSS Trusts in achieving European Working Time Directive (EWTD) compliance. This included provision for the recruitment of additional doctors.

Junior Doctors: Working Hours

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps have been taken to ensure that sufficient junior doctors are employed in Northern Ireland to enable all their working rotas to be compliant with the European Working Time Directive in August 2007.

Paul Goggins: The revised recruitment arrangements agreed in April are aimed at ensuring foil recruitment to all junior doctors' posts for August 2007 thus ensuring the maintenance of codes of compliance with the European Working Time Directive (EWTD).

Junior Doctors: Working Hours

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the likely impact of the career structure for junior doctors in Northern Ireland from August 2007 on  (a) waiting lists for outpatients appointments and  (b) waiting lists for elective surgery.

Paul Goggins: An assessment on the impact of the career structure for junior doctors and its impact on outpatient and elective surgery waiting lists has not been made.

Junior Doctors: Working Hours

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps were taken to ensure that sufficient medical staff would be available to maintain a high standard of patient care during the first round of Medical Training Application Service interviews in Northern Ireland.

Paul Goggins: Trust chief executive, medical and clinical directors and HR directors were notified of the timeline for recruiting doctors to speciality training, in order to ensure that arrangements could be made for the release of panel members and candidates to attend interviews.

Maze Project

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his estimate is of what further expenditure on the Maze project will be before the end of 2007; and how much will be spent on  (a) consultancy fees,  (b) staff costs and  (c) facilitating the work of the Maze Panel.

David Hanson: Estimated expenditure in 2007-08 on the full Maze/Long Kesh programme (including stadium costs) is some £7.6 million.
	Of this, £4.1 million is estimated for consultancy fees and £0.4 million for staff costs. The costs of the Maze/Long Kesh Monitoring Group are limited to travel and attendance fees, which last year cost around £2,000.
	All expenditure post 8 May will be a matter for the local Executive.

Medical Training Application Service

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he expects the outcome of the first round of Medical Training Application Service interviews in Northern Ireland to be known.

Paul Goggins: The last date of speciality interviews is 31 May. All job offers for speciality training programmes and fixed term speciality training appointments will be made by 7 June 2007.

Medical Training Application Service

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he will take to provide assistance to junior doctors in Northern Ireland who are not successful in the round 1 Medical Training Application Service interviews.

Paul Goggins: Career advice and support will be offered to all candidates not successful in round 1.

Medical Training Application Service

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  whether doctors in Northern Ireland who have completed a 12-month fixed term specialty training appointment at year 1 may apply for a specialist training year 1 post in the same specialty in August 2008;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the percentage of doctors appointed to a fixed term specialty training appointment year 1 post in August 2007 in Northern Ireland who are expected to progress to a specialist training year 2 post in the same specialty and unit of application in August 2008.

Paul Goggins: Doctors who are appointed to fixed term training appointments from August 2007 will be able to apply for speciality training programmes where vacancies occur and in keeping with the 2008 person specification.
	Opportunities to progress will be determined by posts becoming available either through vacancies or a reconfiguration of training opportunities.

Medical Training Application Service

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the proportion of junior doctors' time which has been used for  (a) activities related to modernising medical careers and  (b) providing a service for patients in the last 12 months.

Paul Goggins: A series of workshops were organised to advise experienced SHOs and foundation trainees about MMC and the new recruitment process. These were run outside normal working hours to ensure least disruption to the service. Year 2 foundation trainees are required to attend a 10 day regional generic skills programme, which is deducted from their study leave entitlement.
	Trainees are entitled to study leave and annual leave in accordance with the terms and conditions of service and consistent with maintaining essential services. On-site training of doctors and the provision of a service to patients are inextricably linked therefore it is not possible to extract this information.

Medical Training Application Service

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  what criteria other than interview performance are used in Northern Ireland to select doctors for run through training to become consultants;
	(2)  what the average duration has been of Medical Training Application Service round 1 interviews in each speciality in Northern Ireland;
	(3)  whether candidates' Medical Training Application Service application forms will be taken into account when selecting individuals for speciality training and fixed term speciality training appointments for August 2007.

Paul Goggins: For selection to the run through training programme, candidates complete a 30 minute interview, in addition to providing copies of references, a training portfolio and evidence of acquired clinical and academic skills. Panel members will have access to all relevant documentation including the candidate's application form.

Medical Training Application Service

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps were taken to ensure that applicants in Northern Ireland would not be aware of clinical scenarios raised in the first round of Medical Training Application Service interviews prior to their interview in March.

Paul Goggins: All interview questions and clinical scenarios were kept secure and confidential by panel members and the small number of deanery staff involved in the interview process.

Out-Patients: Attendance

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many missed  (a) hospital and  (b) general practitioner appointments there were in each of the health boards in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The total number of missed hospital appointments in each financial year 2001-02 to 2005-06 is provided in the following table. These figures represent the number of outpatient appointments where a patient did not attend and failed to give advanced warning to the hospital.
	
		
			  Health board  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 EHSSB 131,449 128,293 128,766 123,672 125,143 
			 NHSSB 23,587 23,019 22,677 22,472 23,355 
			 SHSSB 31,624 29,066 28,812 26,879 24,617 
			 WHSSB 25,153 23,592 24,554 24,715 26,893 
			 NI Total 211,813 203,970 204,809 197,738 200,008 
			  Note: Data for the financial year 2006-07 will be published in July 2007. Data are disaggregated by Health Board of provider Trust.  Source: Departmental Return KH09. 
		
	
	The Department does not hold information on missed appointments at GP surgeries. This could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Pension Credit

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many applications for pension credit were made in Northern Ireland between 1 April 2004 and 31 March 2007; how many have been processed; and how many are outstanding.

David Hanson: The Pension Service received 18,335 claims for pension credit between 1 April 2005 and 31 March 2007. A separate figure for pension credit claims for the period 1 April 2004 to 31 March 2005 is not available. Management information systems were not available at this time.
	The Pension Service processed 19,088 applications between 1 April 2005 and 31 March 2007. This figure includes some applications, which were carried forward from the previous year. A separate figure for pension credit claims processed for the period 1 April 2004 to 31 March 2005 is not available. Management information systems were not available at this time.
	At 30 April 2007 the total number of pension credit claims outstanding was 1,854. This includes claims which have to be previewed to check all information has been received, those where we have asked customers for further information and those with all the required information to enable a decision to be taken.

Pensions

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his estimate is of the number of people in Northern Ireland making  (a) no provision and  (b) insufficient provision for retirement pension; and what percentage of the workforce these figures represent.

David Hanson: Results from the Family Resources Survey 2005-06 show that 28,500 people (4.2 per cent. of the Northern Ireland work force) have no provision for state pension, 337,500 people (49.4 per cent. of the work force) have no provision for private pensions and 21,500 people (3.1 per cent. of the work force) have no provision for either state pension or private pensions.
	The figures to enable an estimate to be made of the percentage of the work force in Northern Ireland making insufficient provision for retirement pension are not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	 Notes
	1. Figures refer to persons from working age 20 to state pension age who are either full or part-time employed (whether employees or self-employed) and do not include those not working.
	2. Estimates are taken from the Family Resources Survey 2005-06 which is the latest year for which data are available. The estimates of numbers are less robust than the estimates of percentages.
	3. Members who are contributing to a private pension scheme include those who are building up rights within a salary related scheme, those who are currently contributing to a scheme or whose employer makes a contribution on their behalf. Private pension refers to an occupational, personal or stakeholder pension scheme.
	4. Individuals who contribute to both occupational and personal schemes are counted only once in these estimates.

Pensions: Information Services

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of work undertaken by Social Security Agency pension advisers; if he will take steps to retain the pension advisers employed by the Social Security Agency; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: While no formal assessment has been undertaken of the Social Security Agency's pension advisers, they successfully met their performance targets for 2006-07. The agency is currently assessing the resources required to ensure that the needs of older people are met.
	The agency recognises that older people are a vulnerable customer group and that pension advisers play an important role in meeting their needs. The agency remains committed to ensuring that older people can access information and advice on benefit related issues and will continue to offer a pension adviser service.

Schools: Crimes of Violence

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many attacks on school teachers there were in schools in each education and library board area of Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Maria Eagle: The Department does not collect the information requested.
	However, from the 2002-03 school year, statistics on the reasons for suspension have been gathered annually from each education and library board and relate to the number of individual suspensions, not to the number of pupils suspended.
	The following table details the number of suspensions(1) for physical attacks on staff, in each education and library board, in the 2002-03—2004-05 school years.
	(1)( )The count of occasions is based on each incidence of suspension, where an incident is defined as a count from the first day a pupil was suspended until the last day suspended. Prior to 2004-05, the count of occasions was based on each record of suspension identified by the education and library boards, and in some instances longer periods of suspension may have had more than one record. This change is due to an improvement in the data collection systems for suspensions in the education and library boards, which has enabled better analysis of the data. As a result, the number of occasions pupils were suspended in 2004-05 has decreased from previous years. However, care should be taken when comparing the number of occasions in 2004-05 with the number of occasions in previous years.
	
		
			  Physical attacks on staff 
			  Education and  library b oard  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05 
			 Belfast 75 73 84 
			 Western 99 72 49 
			 North Eastern 91 49 51 
			 South Eastern 64 79 57 
			 Southern 36 47 21 
			 NI Total 365 320 262 
		
	
	Reasons for expulsion were first collected in 2003-04. The numbers involved are relatively small and are not disaggregated between education and library boards because of the risk that a school/pupil may be identifiable.
	The following table shows the total number of pupils expelled for physical attacks on staff for the 2003-04 and 2004-05 school years.
	
		
			  Physical attacks on staff 
			   Number 
			 2003-04 7 
			 2004-05 7 
		
	
	The suspension and expulsions statistics for 2005-06 school year are currently being analysed by our statistics branch and will be placed on the DE website when this has been completed.

Sewage

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps are being taken to ensure that the spillage of raw sewage on to the main Londonderry to Limavady road close to BallyKelly Primary School will not recur.

David Cairns: The Water and Sewerage Services (NI) Order 2006 transferred responsibility for the delivery of water and sewerage services from the Department's Water Service Agency to a statutory water and sewerage undertaker. A Government-owned company, Northern Ireland Water (NIW) has been appointed as the undertaker and the issue raised is an operational matter for it. I have asked the chief executive of NIW (Mrs. Katharine Bryan) to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question.

Sexually Transmitted Diseases

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many cases of  (a) HIV,  (b) chlamydia,  (c) gonorrhoea,  (d) syphilis,  (e) genital warts and  (f) genital herpes there have been in Northern Ireland in the last 12 months.

Paul Goggins: The number of cases of sexually transmitted diseases in Northern Ireland in the past 12 months is not available. However, the number of new episodes of sexually transmitted diseases that were recorded at Genito-Urinary Medicine clinics across Northern Ireland during 2006 is presented in the following table.
	
		
			  Condition  Number of new episodes 
			  (a) HIV 55 
			  (b) Chlamydia 2,686 
			  (c) Gonorrhoea 292 
			  (d) Syphilis 82 
			  (e) Anogenital Warts 3,100 
			  (f) Anogential Herpes Simplex 418 
			  Notes: 1. Figures relate to the period 1 January 2006 to 31 December 2006. The figures are currently provisional and may subsequently change. 2. These figures relate to episodes of diagnosis and/or treatment of infection or disease and not individual people. Thus one individual may contribute to more than one episode.  Source: Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre Northern Ireland (CDSC (NI)).

Unemployment Benefits

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people were on unemployment benefit in Northern Ireland in each year since 1997.

David Hanson: Jobseeker's allowance replaced unemployment benefit in October 1996. The average number of people claiming jobseeker's allowance between 1997 and 2006 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Average number of claimants 
			 1997 55,665 
			 1998 56,897 
			 1999 48,978 
			 2000 42,959 
			 2001 40,627 
			 2002 39,965 
			 2003 37,885 
			 2004 34,528 
			 2005 31,889 
			 2006 29,902

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Departments: Disciplinary Proceedings

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many grievance procedures have been initiated in her Department in the last 12 months.

David Lammy: There were no reports of the grievance procedures being initiated formally in DCMS in the last year. The Department's policy is to seek to resolve any problems or concerns raised by staff informally through contact with line management, staff counsellors, trade union representatives or HR as appropriate. Only those cases where the matter cannot be resolved quickly or to the complainant's satisfaction, are recorded and dealt with under the formal grievance procedures.

Departments: EU Council

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many EU Council meetings she has attended since taking up her post; and who represents her if she is unable to attend.

Tessa Jowell: holding answer 30 April 2007
	Ministers and civil servants attend many meetings as part of the process of policy development and advice. It is not usual practice to disclose details or attendance at such meetings. However, I can confirm that the British Government are always represented at EU Council meetings.

Digital Broadcasting: Broadcasting Programmes

Lynda Waltho: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment her Department has made of the public interest in ensuring plurality in  (a) the broadcasting of sports rights and  (b) the supply of digital multi-channel television.

Shaun Woodward: The information is as follows:
	 (a) It is Government policy to ensure that key sporting events can be made available to all television viewers. Therefore some events are protected by law as "listed events". Beyond these arrangements, sports bodies are free to sell their rights to whomever they please, subject to competition law.
	 (b) The Government believe there is a strong public interest in securing a dynamic and competitive market for broadcasting—including digital TV—in the UK. This was one of the key policy objectives underpinning the Communications Act 2003.

Digital Switchover

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 28 March 2007,  Official Report, columns 1551-52W, on digital switchover, whether persons registered as blind or partially sighted but not included in the Department for Work and Pensions records were included in her estimate of eligible persons for the targeted assistance scheme.

Shaun Woodward: The estimates take account of people who are registered as blind and partially sighted but who are not on DWP records and so cannot be allocated to any particular parliamentary constituency or ITV region.

Equality: Grants

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what grants have been made to institutions in  (a) the UK and  (b) the North East for events marking the bicentenary of the first Act to abolish the transatlantic slave trade.

David Lammy: The Heritage Lottery Fund has made 115 awards totalling over £11 million to projects related to the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade and the slave trade generally.
	Five of these have been in the North East (one completed project and four approved projects). They are:
	£40,300 to Durham University Archives for Learning for a larger project which includes an element on the slave trade. (Completed)
	£50,000 to Tyne and Wear Museums for Remembering Slavery; an exhibition showcasing objects, photographs, paintings and documents from the Museum's collections related to the trans-Atlantic slave trade. (Approved)
	£49,400 to Stockton Museums Service for 'Manacles and Money'. (Approved)
	£49,000 to the Black History Consortium for their Commemoration of the Bicentenary of the Abolition of Slavery in 2007. (Approved)
	£17,500 to Identity on Tyne for 'Mapped Roots'. (Approved). This project was funded in collaboration with Arts Council England, which has awarded a further £20,000.
	So far, Arts Council England has made a total of 40 grants to bicentenary projects totalling £1,282,354. Two of these projects are in the North East: the Mapped Roots project and Changing Perspectives, a two year study of Black families and their stories of migration into the North East, which has received £5,000 for its first stage.
	The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) have so far made 17 grants totalling £81,900 across the UK. These include two MLA North East Strategic Commissioning Grants. The first for £10,000 to the Literary and Philosophical Society to conduct a mapping exercise to identify and list slavery related archives and documents held by four key record offices and libraries in the region. The second for £10,000 to the Northumberland Museum Archives and Country Park and Durham University Library Archives Special Collections to create a number of e-learning packages focusing on slavery for use in schools across the North East region.
	The Awards for All grants programme funded by the Big Lottery Fund with the Arts Council, Heritage Lottery Fund and Sport England have so far made 23 grants totalling £151,641 to projects to mark the bicentenary across England and Wales. None of these have been in the North East.

Film

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps the Government  (a) is taking and  (b) plans to take to foster and develop the growth of the British film industry.

Shaun Woodward: The Government are fostering the growth of the British film industry through their strategic agency the UK Film Council. This was set up in 2000 to create a sustainable film industry and to promote the widest possible enjoyment and understanding of cinema throughout the nations and regions of the UK. The Government have also introduced generous new fiscal incentives to support the production of British films by delivering benefit directly to producers and by stimulating inward investment into the UK film industry from overseas.
	Following extensive consultation, the UK Film Council has recently submitted its next three year plan to my Department. This sets out the Council's future strategic and funding priorities and details the initiatives it will be running to deliver these objectives.

Film

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what the investment returns were for the Film Council from National Lottery funding in August 2006;
	(2)  how much the Film Council received from the National Lottery in August 2006.

Shaun Woodward: The following table shows the UK's Film Council income from the National Lottery Distribution Fund in August 2006, and in the entire financial year 2006-07.
	
		
			  Period  Operator -related  i ncome to nearest £1,000  Investment  i ncome to nearest £1,000  Total to nearest £1,000 
			 August 2006 2,367,000 142,000 2,509,000 
			 Financial year 2006-07 24,513,000 1,776,000 26,289,000

Gambling: Licensing

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department plans to take to make more effective the delivery networks identified in its Capability Review.

David Lammy: My Department is fully committed to improving the effectiveness of the delivery networks identified in its Capability Review. Details of how this will be achieved are outlined in the Permanent Secretary's response to the Capability Review (pages 5-8) and in "Transforming DCMS", the transformation action plan. Both are published on the DCMS website:
	http://www.culture.gov.uk/Reference_library/Publications/

Internet: Regulation

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with  (a) the Chancellor of the Exchequer and  (b) Ofcom on the introduction of the new regulatory system for internet sites referred to by the Chancellor in a speech on 7 March; and when these discussions took place.

David Lammy: There have been no discussions between my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and the Chancellor on the regulation of internet sites.
	The independent regulator, Ofcom, does not regulate content on the internet, but does have a statutory duty to promote media literacy under the Communications Act 2003. In pursuit of that duty, Ofcom has been working to raise people's awareness of how to use web browsers, electronic programme guides and other tools in order to navigate safely and effectively. It is currently developing proposals for the management of audio and visual content using content labelling and tools such as internet filtering and firewalls. DCMS and Ofcom officials have had periodic discussions about Ofcom's plans in this area.

Joint Creative Economy Programme

Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what invitations she has issued to her Department's Fashion Summit to inform the Joint Creative Economy Programme; and to whom.

Shaun Woodward: To inform the further development of the joint DCMS/DTI Creative Economy Programme we have held a number of industry summits, including one for the fashion industry.
	For each summit, we invited members of the relevant industry giving them an opportunity to comment on the analysis underpinning our work and on the areas we had identified for further action.
	Invitations to the fashion summit—held on 16 April at the London College of Fashion—were issued to the following people.
	
		
			  Name  Organisation 
			 Kim Winser Aquascutum 
			 Hilary Riva British Fashion Council 
			 Jasper Conran Jasper Conran 
			 Alexandra Shulman British Vogue 
			 Vivienne Westwood Vivienne Westwood 
			 Dr Frances Corner London College of Fashion 
			 Ursula Hudson London College of Fashion 
			 Linda Florance Skillfast-UK 
			 Niki Scordi Browns 
			 Helen Keenan London Development Agency 
			 Mary Reilly London Development Agency 
			 Tom Campbell London Development Agency 
			 Manda Rigby London Development Agency 
			 Jane Rapley QBE Central Saint Martins 
			 Stuart Rose Marks and Spencer 
			 Annette Browne Marks and Spencer 
			 Tony Ginty Marks and Spencer 
			 Betty Jackson Betty Jackson 
			 Jenny Packham Jenny Packham 
			 Giles Deacon Giles Deacon 
			 Lauretta Roberts Drapers 
			 Josephine Collins Drapers Online 
			 Sir Paul Smith Paul Smith Ltd 
			 Jane Shepherdson Jane Shepherdson 
			 Katie Grand Pop Magazine 
			 Marios Schwab Marios Schwab 
			 Erdem Moralioglu Erdem 
			 Wendy Dagworthy Royal College of Art 
			 Clare Johnston Royal College of Art 
			 Penny Martin Show Studio 
			 Jane Boardman Talk PR 
			 Sarah Mower Fashion journalist 
			 Ann-Sofie Back Ann-Sofie Back 
			 Antoni Burakowski and Alison Roberts Antoni and Alison 
			 Christopher Kane Christopher Kane 
			 Hamish Morrow Hamish Morrow 
			 Margaret Howell Margaret Howell 
			 Galahad Clark Terra Plana/ United Nude 
			 Joe Corre Agent Provocateur 
			 Lucille Lewin Whistles 
			 Sim Scavazza Formerly of Miss Selfridge 
			 Justine Fairgrove Relative PR 
			 Michael Blow Blow PR 
			 Caren Downie Topshop 
			 Nick Passmore Topshop 
			 Wendy Malem Centre for Fashion Enterprise 
			 Alex Gore Browne Alex Gore Browne 
			 Toby Meadows Belle and Bunty 
			 Ashish Gupta Ashish 
			 Gareth Pugh Gareth Pugh 
			 Nargess Gharani and Vanya Strok Gharani Strok 
			 Jonathan Saunders Jonathan Saunders 
			 Manish Arora Manish Arora 
			 Caroline Lamb, George MacPherson Peter Jenson 
			 Amy Molyneaux and Percy Parker PPQ 
			 Justin Thornton and Thea Bragazzi Preen 
			 Richard Nicoll Richard Nicoll 
			 Roksanda Ilincic Roksanda Ilincic 
			 Aleksander Sinha and Fiona Stanic Sinha-Stanic 
			 Representative Saltwater 
			 Georgina Von Etzdorf Georgina Von Etzdorf 
			 Aimee McWilliams Aimee McWilliams 
			 Avsh Alom Gur Avsh Alom Gur 
			 Representative Berube 
			 Jacob Kimmie Jacob Kimmie 
			 Jean-Pierre Braganza Jean-Pierre Braganza 
			 Representative Kisa 
			 Laura Lees Laura Lees 
			 Representative Tata Naka 
			 Maria Grachvogel Maria Grachvogel 
			 Cozmo Jenks Cozmo Jenks 
			 Georgina Goodman Georgina Goodman 
			 Lara Bohinc Lara Bohinc 
			 Olivia Morris Olivia Morris 
			 Rupert Sanderson Rupert Sanderson 
			 Bill Amberg Bill Amberg 
			 Astrid Blake Alice and Astrid 
			 Ally Capellino Ally Capellino 
			 Helen David English Eccentrics 
			 Representative JasMB 
			 Representative Lola Rose 
			 Alice Temperley Temperley London 
			 Nick Hartley Ann Louise Roswald 
			 Danielle Scutt Danielle Scutt 
			 Edina Ronay Edina Ronay 
			 Michiko Koshino Michiko Koshino 
			 Sara Berman Sara Berman 
			 Jennifer Williams-Baffoe Wilbaforce and Cutting It 
			 Terry Mansfield National Magazines 
			 Rob Bready ASOS 
			 Richard Bradbury River Island

Joint Creative Economy Programme

Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will publish the supporting papers provided for the industry summits held to inform the further development of the Joint Creative Economy Programme.

Shaun Woodward: It is not possible to release the supporting papers provided for the industry summits as this would inhibit the formulation or development of Government policy. The papers were intended to inform the development of policy underpinning our approach to supporting the creative economy. We will publish the outcome of our discussion in the forthcoming Creative Economy Green Paper, planned for the summer.

Mass Media

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether the new text-based labelling system of media content to be introduced by Ofcom referred to by the Chancellor in a speech on 7 March, will be applied to the print media.

Shaun Woodward: The independent regulator, Ofcom, has a duty to promote media literacy under the Communications Act 2003. In pursuit of that duty, Ofcom has been developing proposals for a common labelling framework which would extend to material either broadcast or found on electronic communications networks.

Olympic Games: Greater London

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether she expects London council tax payers to receive a refund following the sale of land after the Olympic games have been held.

Tessa Jowell: Decisions on the London council tax are a matter for the Mayor of London.

Olympic Games: Greater London

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will place in the Library a copy of the revised memorandum of understanding with the Mayor of London on the costs of the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympic games; and if she will make a statement.

Tessa Jowell: My statement to the House on 15 March, set out that the Mayor of London and I have agreed to rewrite our memorandum of understanding to put in place profit sharing arrangements to enable the lottery and future regeneration needs of the local area to benefit from the returns on the investment that we are making in the Olympic park.
	Work on this has begun; when it is completed I will have a copy of the revised memorandum placed in the Library of the House.

Radio: Essex

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the licensed commercial radio stations in  (a) Romford,  (b) Essex and  (c) London.

Shaun Woodward: I understand that the following are the licensed commercial analogue and digital radio services in each area:
	 (a) Romford-Time 107.5
	 (b) Essex—Essex FM, Classic Gold, Dream 107.7 (Chelmsford), Chill, Dream 100 (Tendring), Fun Radio, Kiss 100, Our Kind of Music, Passion for the Planet, SGR Colchester, Ten 17 (Harlow), XFM.
	 (c) London—Capital Disney, Capital Gold, Capital Radio, Chill, Choice FM, Classic Gold Digital, Club Asia, Easy Radio, Fun Radio, Heart 106.2, Heat, Galaxy Digital, Gaydar, Kerrang, Kismat Radio, Kiss 100, LBC 97.3 FM, LBC News 1152 AM, London 94.9, London Greek Radio (Haringey), London Turkish Radio (north London), Magic 105.4 FM, Panjab Radio, Passion, Premier Christian Radio, Radio Jackie (Kingston-upon-Thames), Real Radio Digital, Smash Hits, 102.2 Smooth FM, Spectrum Radio, Sunrise Radio, The Arrow, The Hits, Time 106.8 (Thamesmead), Time 107.3 (Lewisham), UCB UK, Virgin Radio 105.8 FM, Virgin Radio Groove, Virgin Classic Rock, Virgin Radio Xtreme, Xfm, Yarr Radio.

Radio: Regulation

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department is taking to reduce the regulatory burden on analogue commercial radio.

Shaun Woodward: The regulatory regime for analogue commercial radio is established under the Communications Act 2003 and the Broadcasting Acts. Detailed implementation is the responsibility of the independent communications regulator Ofcom. Ofcom are currently consulting on phase 3 of their review of the future of radio and, subject to the outcome of that consultation, Ofcom and the Government will consider the case for reducing regulatory or legislative burdens on analogue commercial radio.

Sports: Scotland

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much National Lottery money was paid to sports-based causes in Scotland via distributors other than SportScotland in each of the last five years.

Richard Caborn: The Big Lottery Fund has supplied the following information about grants to physical activity and sport by it and its predecessor bodies. The information covers the last five complete financial years.
	
		
			  £ 
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  Total 
			 Active Futures 0 0 0 927,246 3,901,081 4,828,327 
			 NOPES Activities 0 33,569,056 1,276,043 0 0 34,845,099 
			 NOPES Facilities 2,910,336 4,119,865 27,980,074 13,852,510 0 48,862,785 
			 Young Peoples Fund 0 0 0 0 1,111,482 1,111,482 
			 Awards for All 0 0 250,000 250,000 500,000 1,000,000 
			 School Sports Coordinators(1) 0 0 940,000 930,000 930,000 2,800,000 
			 Youth Football(2) 0 0 0 0 1,500,000 1,500,000 
			 Total 2,910,336 37,688,921 30,446,117 15,959,756 7,942,563 94,947,693 
			 (1) Grant administered and delivered by Sport Scotland (2) Grant administered by Sport Scotland and delivered by the Scottish Football Association. 
		
	
	UK Sport has supplied the following information about grants in Scotland in each of the last five completed financial years. The figures given include grants to athletes who represent Scotland, to non governmental bodies based in Scotland and to sport events which could have benefited Scotland.
	
		
			  £ 
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  Total 
			 Athlete 580,028 551,908 533,190 441,546 725,421 2,832,093 
			 NGB 247,931 300,456 371,627 533,406 318,380 1,771,800 
			 Events 376,908 311,935 272,040 70,000 100,000 1,130,883 
			 Total 1,204,867 1,164,299 1,176,857 1,044,952 1,143,801 5,734,776

Television: Telephone Services

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her Department's policy is on dealing with the recent television premium rate phone call incidents.

Shaun Woodward: Responsibility for the regulation of these services rests with the independent regulators, Ofcom and ICSTIS. In response to recent concerns, ICSTIS has set out a range of actions aimed at restoring public trust in premium rate services. This includes the introduction of a licensing regime for all premium rate service providers operating participation TV services. In addition, Ofcom is now undertaking an inquiry into these services and will examine consumer protection issues. It will report to the Ofcom Board in early summer. In the meantime, Ofcom is investigating specific allegations. Where this exposes serious failures of compliance, or failures to protect the interests of consumers, Ofcom has the power to impose statutory sanctions and intends to use them.

Tourism

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to increase the number of people holidaying in the UK from  (a) overseas and  (b) the UK.

Shaun Woodward: The forthcoming tourism strategy for the 2012 games, which my Department will publish in partnership with VisitBritain and Visit London, will set out the framework under which the public and private sectors can work to increase  (a) the numbers of inbound visitors to the UK, and  (b) the numbers of domestic residents holidaying (or visiting attractions) within this country.
	The strategy will build on my Department's existing policies for promoting and supporting the tourism industry through marketing at UK and England levels, and support for the domestic industry in areas including product quality and workforce skills.
	I expect the strategy to be published before the end of July.

Tourism: North-east Region

John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of likely revenues from tourism in the North East of England over the next five years; and if she will make a statement.

Shaun Woodward: No forecasts have been made for the revenues from tourism in the North East.

Tourism: North-east Region

John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the value of tourism to the North East in each year since 2002.

Shaun Woodward: The table shows the total spend in the North East from (i) UK residents (with an overnight stay) and (ii) overseas residents, since 2002.
	
		
			  Domestic overnight spend( 1) 
			  North East  £ million 
			 2002(2) 868 
			 2003 824 
			 2004 700 
			 2005 822 
			 (1 )The methodology for the UKTS changed in 2005 meaning that comparisons with previous years should be treated with caution. This change occurred as a result of concerns with the quality of 2004 data, which are thought to be an under-representation of the true position. (2) For 2002, data relate to Northumbria only.  Source: UK Tourism Survey (National Tourist Boards) 
		
	
	
		
			  Total spend by overseas residents 
			  North East  £ million 
			 2002 169 
			 2003 213 
			 2004 194 
			 2005 206 
			  Source: International Passenger Survey (ONS) 
		
	
	In addition, account should be taken of the total spend of day visitors to, or within, the North East. The Leisure Day Visits Survey in 2002-03 recorded a total spend of £800 million to destinations in the North East. It is not possible to provide a time series for this information as the surveys are run intermittently.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan: Drugs

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the  (a) responsibilities and  (b) functions are of the UK's role as (i) G8 lead nation for the counter narcotics campaign as set out in the Joint Declaration of an Enduring Relationship between the UK and Afghanistan and (ii) partner nation in the field for counter narcotics, as set out in the Enduring Relationship Action Plan 2006-07.

Margaret Beckett: The UK took on lead G8 responsibility for counter narcotics following the Bonn Agreement in 2001. In 2006 it was agreed that the concept of 'lead nation' was redundant, as the Afghan Government now had lead responsibility for all aspects of security sector reform. The UK therefore became Afghanistan's 'partner nation' on counter narcotics.
	Signed in July 2005, the Joint Declaration of An Enduring Relationship between the UK and Afghanistan is a bilateral agreement between the UK and Afghanistan. The Enduring Relationship Action Plan 2006-07 sets out the commitments between the two Governments under the 2005 Joint Declaration. Both are available in the Library of the House. Under both the Joint Declaration and the Action Plan, the UK agreed to help Afghanistan mobilise and co-ordinate international efforts to end the drugs trade, in support of the four national priorities identified in the Afghan Government's national drug control strategy (NDCS) - targeting the trafficker, strengthening and diversifying legal rural livelihoods, reducing demand and developing state institutions. We are spending £270 million over three years in support of the NDCS.

Bolivia

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when a Minister from her Department last visited Bolivia.

Geoff Hoon: The then Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister, the late Nicholas Ridley, visited Bolivia in 1980. Since then a number of other Ministerial visits to Bolivia have taken place. The then Minister for Trade, right hon. Brian Wilson, visited in May 1999 and the then Secretary of State for International Development, the right hon. Member for Birmingham, Ladywood (Clare Short), visited in August 1999. Most recently, the then Minister for Energy, right hon. Brian Wilson, visited in 2002.

China: Diplomatic Service

Robert Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether she has raised the matter of the provision of assistance by British consular officials to British nationals of Chinese ethnic origin in China, Hong Kong and the Macao Special Administrative Regions with the Chinese Government in the last 12 months; and whether she plans to take up this matter with the Chinese Government in the future.

Ian McCartney: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has not raised the matter of consular assistance to British nationals of Chinese ethnic origin in China, Hong Kong and the Macao Special Administrative Regions in the last 12 months, and has no plans to do so in the immediate future. Consular officials continue to make representations when appropriate.

Cuba: Political Prisoners

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what her estimate is of the number of political prisoners in Cuba.

Geoff Hoon: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave to him on 20 March 2007,  Official Report, column 835W.
	We will continue to press the Cuban authorities for the immediate release of all political prisoners.

Departments: Renewable Energy

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much energy in kilowatt hours was purchased by her Department from renewable sources in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Geoff Hoon: In the UK, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office purchased 7,069,812 kilowatt hours of energy from renewable sources in the financial year April 2006 to March 2007.

Iraq: Peace Keeping Operations

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment she has made of progress in the political, economic and social conditions in the Iraqi provinces of  (a) Al Basrah,  (b) Al Muthanna,  (c) Dhi Qar and  (d) Maysan.

Margaret Beckett: Political tension in Basra has increased following the recent withdrawal of the Fadila political party from the United Iraqi Alliance (the main Shi'a coalition). This has on occasion erupted into violence. The challenging security situation and the legacy of a distorted command economy have slowed economic development in Basra and unemployment is high. The Government are working to build the capability of local institutions, including through the work of the provincial reconstruction team (PRT). Basra's elected provincial council was the first to write its own provincial development strategy—the key to unlocking central Government investment. The Basra Development Forum has also been an important step towards building a closer co-operation between provincial authorities in Basra and central authorities in Baghdad to help improve the situation.
	Muthanna and Dhi Qar were transferred to Iraqi security control last year. Both provinces remain stable and their local authorities have shown themselves capable of managing the challenges they face. Unemployment is high in Dhi Qar, as well as in Muthanna. The Dhi Qar PRT is pursuing a range of projects, from basic infrastructure, water purification and electrical sub-stations, through to an amusement park and museum in Nasiriyah, and support for Dhi Qar artists' groups to improve the quality of life for local citizens. The Muthanna PRT is working with the provincial government to carry forward projects aimed at the province's most pressing problems: unemployment, agricultural reform, water, electricity and transport. In both al-Muthanna and Dhi Qar, the PRTs are working with the provincial authorities to build their budgetary planning capacity.

Iraq: Peace Keeping Operations

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 23 April 2007,  Official Report, column 914W, on Iraq: peace keeping operations, if she will make it her policy to provide assistance from British overseas posts to Iraqi nationals who have left Iraq after threats of violence because of their work as interpreters with the British Army.

Kim Howells: We already consider requests for assistance from British overseas posts to Iraqi nationals who have left Iraq after threats of violence because of their work as interpreters with the British army. As I said in my response to my hon. Friend on 23 April 2007,  Official Report, column 914W all such requests for assistance are dealt with on a case by case basis, taking account of individual circumstances.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when she expects to reply to the letter of 14 March from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Mr. T.L. Pun.

Margaret Beckett: The letter sent from my right hon. Friend was received without his constituent's responses to the reasons for refusal provided by the entry clearance officer, preventing my providing a meaningful reply. My officials contacted my right hon. Friend's constituency office on 5 and 20 April to obtain a copy of the paperwork. When officials have received the paperwork from my right hon. Friend's office I will be able to send an appropriate reply.

Nigeria: Elections

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether she has made representations to the Nigerian Government following the recent presidential and gubernatorial elections on strengthening  (a) the Anti-Corruption Commission and  (b) the Independent Electoral Commission.

Ian McCartney: Immediately after the 21 April presidential elections our high commissioner in Abuja and my hon. Friend the Member for Sunderland, South (Mr. Mullin) made representations to President Obasanjo and President-elect Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, making clear that we were disappointed by the violence, corruption and the Independent National Electoral Commission's management of the elections, and that the Government of Nigeria must address these shortcomings and return to the path of reform, including the fight against corruption.
	My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary issued a statement on 23 April. The text of the statement is available on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website at:
	http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029391629&a=KArticle&aid=1176969243828&year=2007&month=2007- 04-01.
	We will continue to make such representations, including on the role of the Independent National Electoral Commission and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, until the Government address our concerns.

Nigeria: Elections

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when she expects to receive reports from international observers following the recent presidential and gubernatorial elections in Nigeria.

Ian McCartney: The main international observer missions have published preliminary statements. The EU election observation mission published a Statement of Preliminary Findings and Conclusions on 23 April, which is available on the EU website at: www.europa. eu/index_en.htm. The EU mission will publish a final report within two months of the conclusion of the entire electoral process. The chairman of the Commonwealth Observer Group issued an interim statement on 22 April available at: www.the commonwealth.org/. The final report of the Observer Group will be submitted to the Commonwealth Secretary-General, who in turn will forward it to the Government of Nigeria, the Independent National Electoral Commission, political parties and then to all Commonwealth Governments. The National Democratic Institute issued a preliminary statement of observations and recommendations on 23 April (www.ndi.org). The International Republican Institute issued a statement of Preliminary Findings on 22 April (www.iri.org) and the observer mission of the Economic Community of West African States published Preliminary Declarations on the state elections on 15 April and on the federal elections on 23 April (www.ecowas.int).

Nigeria: Elections

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports she has received from European Union election observers on the extent of  (a) tampering with ballots and  (b) voter intimidation in the recent presidential and gubernatorial elections in Nigeria.

Ian McCartney: In its preliminary conclusions on the elections published on 23 April (www.eueom-ng.org), the EU election observation mission reports that in the state elections, EU observers witnessed incidents of hijacking of ballot boxes. In almost one fifth of polling stations visited, attempts to influence voters were witnessed. Disorder inside polling stations was witnessed in 15 per cent. of polling stations visited during closing and counting. In almost 30 per cent. of collation centres EU observers had indications of proof that polling results were fraudulently changed. EU observers witnessed cases of fraud, such as that in five wards in Zamfara state, where no elections took place but fake results were included in the governorship elections for the wards concerned. On election day disruption, sometimes violent, of the polling and counting processes by groups of thugs was observed in several states.
	In the federal elections EU observers witnessed examples of ballot box stuffing, alteration of official result forms, stealing of sensitive polling materials, vote buying and under age voting. In 14 per cent. of observed polling stations attempts were made to influence voters. Cases of vote buying were observed in Niger and Jigawa states. Disorder was observed in 24 per cent. of the result transfer and collation centre processes observed. A number of fraudulent practices were observed. In many polling stations unused ballot papers were marked and stuffed into the ballot box resulting in almost 100 per cent. voter turnout, as observed in Kwara, Gombe, Edo and Niger states.
	Violence was judged to have been a major concern and incidents increased as the elections drew nearer. The EU observers state that credible reports indicate a total of at least 200 people were killed in election-related incidents before and during the elections. The widespread use of thugs by a number of political parties created a significant degree of fear and intimidation. Numerous violent incidents were reported by EU observers, often involving destruction of campaign material and party offices, harassment, intimidation and violent clashes between party supporters. Political sponsorship, recruitment and use of thugs was witnessed by EU observers in Borno, Abia, Taraba, Gombe, Bauchi, Kaduna, Zamfara, Niger, Oyo, Osun, Kogi and Edo states. Assaults, assassination of candidates and attempted assassinations of candidates were reported in the pre-election period. A heavier security presence contributed to a reduction in violent incidents in the federal elections. But turnout of women for the federal elections on 21 April appeared to be lower than for the state elections on 14 April, which could have been due, at least in part, to violence during the state elections.
	These observations have been confirmed in most respects by my hon. Friend the Member for Sunderland, South (Mr. Mullin) who undertook an observation mission on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Occupied Territories

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps her Department has taken to ensure that no products emanating from settlements built in occupied territory in breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention are purchased by her Department and its overseas missions.

Kim Howells: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) does not currently have a policy precluding the purchase of goods emanating from the settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. The FCO's policy on the procurement of goods is based on value for money, having due regard to propriety and regularity and ensuring full compliance with the EU consolidated Public Procurement directive, implemented in the UK by the Public Contracts Regulations 2006, where applicable. However, in practice the FCO in London and FCO Posts do not purchase goods from the settlements.

Occupied Territories

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will instruct overseas missions not to purchase and consume products emanating from settlements built in Occupied Territories in breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Kim Howells: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave her today (UIN 132723). There is no provision in either the EU consolidated Public Procurement directive or the UK Public Contracts Regulations 2006 (SI 2006 No. 5) to instruct the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's overseas missions in this way and I do not therefore intend to do so.

Occupied Territories: Taxation

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations have been made to Israel and the Palestinian authorities on the release of Palestinian tax and customs revenues collected by Israel.

Kim Howells: We welcome Israeli Prime Minister Olmert and Palestinian President Abbas' meeting on 23 December 2006, and the resulting release of US$100 million in Palestinian tax revenues.
	At the General Affairs and External Relations Council on 23 April, EU Foreign Ministers repeated their call for Israel to immediately resume the transfer of withheld Palestinian tax and customs revenues, directly or through the Temporary International mechanism. We support this. Officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office raised this issue with the Israeli Embassy in London on 18 April.
	We have not made any formal representations to the Palestinian authorities, as it is the Palestinian Authority's money that is being withheld. However, we have discussed the issue with the Palestinian Authority on a number of occasions.

Parliamentary Scrutiny

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on which occasions the Government overrode the scrutiny reserve resolution in each of the last five years.

Geoff Hoon: The following table provides information on the number of overrides in each House since the Government began sending twice-yearly lists to the chairpersons of the House of Commons European Scrutiny Committee and the House of Lords European Union Committee. Details of each case are included in these lists. In each case a Minister overrides the Scrutiny Reserve Resolution, they account for their action in writing to the chairperson of each Scrutiny Committee.
	
		
			  Period  House of Lords  House of Commons 
			 January to June 2003 30 26 
			 July to December 2003 34 33 
			 January to June 2004 13 16 
			 June to December 2004 20 22 
			 January to June 2005(1) 28 52 
			 July to December 2005 17 19 
			 January to June 2006 15 12 
			 July to December 2006 24 29 
			 (1) Figures for the first half of 2005 include a period when Parliament was dissolved and a period immediately after the opening of Parliament, before the European Union Committee in the House of Lords and the European Scrutiny Committee in the House of Commons could be appointed.

Somalia: Terrorism

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps she is taking to seek a ceasefire by Islamic insurgents in Somalia.

Ian McCartney: The UK does not have contact with the Islamist insurgents in Somalia, but we have called for an immediate end to all fighting and publicly urged all parties to commit to a truce and agree a lasting ceasefire.
	We have repeatedly made clear that all parties in Somalia need to reject violence and allow the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) to do their job. Any differences that some groups in Mogadishu might have with the TFG should be pursued through the National Reconciliation Congress and dialogue with the TFG rather than by resorting to violence. We condemn any attacks on the TFG, which is the only legitimate route through which governance, peace and stability can be restored to Somalia. At the same time, we have repeatedly made clear to the TFG that they must make genuine attempts to reach out to all groups in Somalia that credibly reject violence.

Sudan

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations she has made to the government of Sudan on Janjaweed militia activity in Darfur.

Ian McCartney: We have pressed the Government of Sudan to act on its obligations under UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1706 (2006). This requires implementation of an effective ceasefire and of the Darfur Peace Agreement, including its provisions for the disarmament of the Janjaweed/armed militias; and a renewed political process between the Government of Sudan and the rebel groups.
	My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary condemned the most recent Government of Sudan bombing raids in North Darfur, between 19 and 21 April, which resulted in a number of civilian injuries and deaths.
	To maintain pressure on the Government of Sudan to implement their commitments to the international community, we are currently discussing the elements of a new UNSCR with international partners and the UN.

Sudan

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment the Government have made of the need for a no-fly zone over Darfur; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: We utterly condemn the recent bombings in North Darfur by the Sudanese Government. They are in direct violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1591 and demonstrate a lack of commitment to the peace process.
	The Sudanese Government must commit to an immediate ceasefire. If they do not, we will be forced to press for tougher measures. We are considering all options, including measures to allow better monitoring of the illegal use of aircraft in Darfur.

Sudan

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government plan to take at United Nations level following recent reports by the United Nations Panel of Experts that the Government of the Sudan are operating aircraft with United Nations markings in Darfur.

Ian McCartney: We are very concerned by reports that the Government of Sudan are operating aircraft with UN markings in Darfur. The Sudanese Government resumed bombing villages in Darfur last week, resulting in a number of civilian injuries and deaths. We condemn these attacks, which show little regard for human life.
	We supported the report by the Panel of Experts and its recommendations at the UN Sanctions Committee. It has not yet been transmitted to the UN Security Council, nor has its contents been made public. Our Ambassador to the UN, Sir Emyr Jones Parry, reports developments regularly to my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary. We continue to discuss the case for further sanctions in the UN.

Sudan

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment the Government have made of the steps taken by the US Administration to block transfers by US commercial banks of oil payments to the Government of Sudan; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: We are aware of the steps taken by the US Administration to block transfers by US commercial banks of oil payments to the Government of Sudan. We are keeping the situation in Sudan under close review. If the Sudanese Government do not co-operate with the international community, we are prepared to consider further sanctions. We are discussing the elements of a new UN Security Council Resolution with international partners, which would include further targeted sanctions against individuals engaged in violence or responsible for authorising it; an extension of the arms embargo to cover the whole of Sudan; and, measures to allow better monitoring of the illegal use of aircraft in Darfur.

Sudan

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether she has received evidence of breaches of the sanctions regime in the Darfur region of Sudan.

Ian McCartney: The Sudanese Government resumed bombing villages in Darfur last week, resulting in a number of civilian injuries and deaths. We condemn these attacks, which show little regard for human life. We supported the report by the Panel of Experts and its recommendations at the UN Sanctions Committee. It has not yet been transmitted to the UN Security Council nor has its contents been made public.

Uganda: Arrests

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports she has received on the welfare of the recently arrested leaders of the Ugandan Opposition Beatrice Atim and Hussein Kyanjo; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: Ugandan Opposition MPs Beatrice Atim and Hussein Kyanjo were arrested on 16 April, following demonstrations in Kampala on 12 April protesting about plans to give away parts of Mabira forest to the Sugar Corporation of Uganda Ltd. They have been charged with participating in a riot. They were granted bail and released on 18 April. Their case will be heard on 15 May. Our high commission in Kampala has been in contact with Hussein Kyanjo to check on the welfare of both MPs, which we understand is satisfactory.
	We condemn the violence that erupted on the streets of Kampala on 12 April resulting in the deaths of three people. We call on all sides to uphold full respect for human rights and to respect the rule of law.

Uganda: Human Rights

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps she is taking to monitor the human rights situation in Kampala; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: I refer my hon. Friend to the written answer I gave to the hon. Member for Moray (Angus Robertson) on 26 April 2007,  Official Report, column 1260W.
	Our high commission in Kampala continues to closely follow the human rights situation in Kampala and in Uganda as a whole.
	Most recently the plans to give away parts of Mabira forest to private ownership have resulted in violent street protest and deaths in Kampala. In our contacts with the Ugandan Government we will continue to stress the importance of the police acting responsibly and proportionately when policing demonstrations.

Uganda: Peace Negotiations

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps she is taking to monitor the newly established ceasefire agreement between the Lord's Resistance Army and the Ugandan Government; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: The Cessation of Hostilities Monitoring Team is responsible for monitoring the recently revised and extended Cessation of Hostilities Agreement between the Lord's Resistance Army and the Ugandan Government. We welcome the decision by the African Union to deploy two additional monitors from each of the five official observer countries—Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa.

UN Resolutions: Frontiers

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many notifications have been received by the UN Security Council Committee established pursuant to UN Resolution 1737 (2006) since 23 December 2006 from states reporting the entry into or transit through their territories of designated persons.

Margaret Beckett: The UN Security Council Committee established, pursuant to Security Council Resolution 1737 (2006), has received two notifications from member states of travel by individuals designated in the Annexes to resolutions 1737 (2006) and 1747 (2007). Russia notified the Committee in March of the pending travel to Moscow of General Zolqadr for bilateral talks and Indonesia notified the Committee in March of the pending travel to Jakarta of Mohammad Reza Assadi, an employee of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, for a regional conference.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Community Development: Religion

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 30 April 2007
	 Two reports have so far been published. The first, the Survey of Parties in the Application Process, was published in May 2006. This survey evaluated the processes of application that occurred in the first round of the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund (FCCBF). The fund is administered by the Community Development Foundation (CDF) and the report is available on the CDF website at: http://www.cdf.org.uk.
	The second report on the first survey into the impact of the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund was published in March 2007. This report is available on the CDF website.

Departments: Great Yarmouth

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much funding her Department and its predecessors provided to Great Yarmouth borough council in each of the last 30 years for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: Complete figures are readily available only for the last five years. Payments made to Great Yarmouth borough council by Communities and Local Government and its predecessors since 2002-03 were as follows.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Formula grant  Other payments  Total 
			 2002-03 9.0 9.6 18.6 
			 2003-04 9.0 12.1 21.1 
			 2004-05 8.2 5.0 13.2 
			 2005-06 8.5 4.7 13.2 
			 2006-07 9.8 6.3 16.1

Home Information Packs

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the conclusions and recommendations of the Better Regulation Commission's report Energy Performance Certificates and Residential Property; and whether home information packs will be introduced on 1 June;
	(2)  whether her Department is proceeding with the requirement that energy performance certificates be included in home information packs following the report by the Better Regulation Commission, Energy Performance Certificates and Residential Property, published on 26 February; and if she will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: The Government have considered the views of the Better Regulation Commission (BRC) as well as the views of a wide range of stakeholders and organisations. We believe that home buyers need up to date energy information on their new home rather than energy information which is up to ten years out of date as the BRC have proposed.
	Home Information Packs including Energy Performance Certificates that are no more than three months old at the point of first marketing will be introduced on 1 June. The relevant regulations and supporting regulatory impact assessments were laid before the House on 29 March and came into force on 19 April.

Housing: Income

Daniel Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the total amount was of capital receipts from shared owners staircasing up their equity share in  (a) 2005-06 and  (b) 2006-07; and to how many units these receipts related.

Yvette Cooper: holding answer 1 May 2007
	 When shared owners increase their equity share, the registered social landlord is required to reinvest the part of the receipt which represents any grant provided by the Housing Corporation for the provision of the property. In  (a) 2005-06 this grant represented £48 million arising from the sale of further shares in 2,410 units. Data for  (b) 2006-07 are not yet available.
	The remaining receipts are retained by registered social landlords and details are not held centrally.

Public Houses: Closures

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what research she has commissioned on the impact of pub closures on local communities; and if she will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: I have not commissioned any specific research on the impact of pub closures on local communities.

Regeneration: Great Yarmouth

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much departmental funding has been allocated to regeneration projects in Great Yarmouth in each year since 1997.

Phil Woolas: Information is only available on allocations made directly by Communities and Local Government and its predecessors to Great Yarmouth borough council since 2002. All of these allocations were made under the European Regional Development Fund Objective 2 programme. These do not correspond to payments in the years concerned.
	The amounts allocated were as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2002-03 0.2 
			 2003-04 3.0 
			 2004-05 1.4 
			 2005-06 1.6 
			 2006-07 1.5

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Postal Voting: Lancashire

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what percentage of the electorate has registered for a postal vote in each local authority in Lancashire.

Bridget Prentice: The Government only hold information on registration figures as of 1 December 2006, and the number of postal voters as of 1 January 2007. Using this information provides the following percentages for the local government electorate in Lancashire:
	
		
			   Percentage 
			 Burnley 10.72 
			 Chorley 24.69 
			 Fylde 11.72 
			 Hyndburn 11.4 
			 Lancaster 9.14 
			 Pendle 11.31 
			 Preston 13.34 
			 Ribble Valley 5.25 
			 Rossendale 12.38 
			 South Ribble 13.46 
			 West Lancashire 15.2 
			 Wyre 19.15 
		
	
	Updated information may be obtained directly from local authorities.

Bankruptcy: Suffolk

David Ruffley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many people were declared bankrupt in Suffolk in each year since 1997.

Harriet Harman: A bankruptcy order is made on the petition of the debtor or one of his creditors when the court is satisfied that there is no prospect of the debt being paid. The following table shows the number of bankruptcy orders made at either Bury St. Edmunds or Ipswich county courts since 1998, the earliest year for which statistics are available. Bury St. Edmunds and Ipswich are the only two county courts in Suffolk which deal with insolvency matters.
	Bankruptcy petitions should be presented in the court that deals with the area where the debtor has lived or traded for the longest period in the previous six months. However, the insolvency jurisdictions of particular county courts are not directly comparable with standard geographies such as counties or parliamentary constituencies. For these reasons, figures shown in the table will not be an exact measure of bankruptcies in Suffolk.
	
		
			  Number of bankruptcy orders made at Bury St. Edmunds or Ipswich county courts: 1998 to 2006 
			   Number of bankruptcy orders made in Bury St. Edmunds county court  Number of bankruptcy orders made in Ipswich county court  Total for Bury St. Edmonds and Ipswich county courts 
			 1998 87 191 278 
			 1999 80 212 292 
			 2000 81 191 272 
			 2001 92 179 271 
			 2002 128 186 314 
			 2003 122 274 396 
			 2004 142 289 431 
			 2005 217 337 554 
			 2006 274 513 787 
			  Source: Insolvency Service

Constituencies

William Cash: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will publish maps showing the precise new boundaries of parliamentary constituencies in England following the recent Boundary Commission report.

Bridget Prentice: Volumes 3 and 4 of the Boundary Commission for England's Fifth Periodical Report set out in some detail, on maps produced by Ordnance Survey, where the proposed new boundaries for parliamentary constituencies in England would lie.
	The draft order to implement the new constituencies, which is currently before Parliament, mirrors in full the recommendations of the Boundary Commission for England.
	We have no current plans to make more detailed constituency maps available. However, once the current draft order is made we will be exploring with the Boundary Commissions and Ordnance Survey the possibility of producing more detailed constituency maps.

Courts: Interpreters

Philip Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much was spent by the court system on interpreters in the latest period for which figures are available.

Harriet Harman: The information requested is not collected centrally (and could be provided only at disproportionate cost) for interpreters used in the Crown court and criminal hearings in the magistrates courts. In each of the last five years the costs of interpreters for civil and family hearings are as follows:
	
		
			   Cost (£) 
			 2002-03 181,000 
			 2003-04 204,000 
			 2004-05 250,000 
			 2005-06 494,000 
			 2006-07 (1)208,000 
			 (1) As at end September. 
		
	
	Changes to the financial systems used to pay interpreters have taken effect in the last couple of years and the figures quoted are therefore approximate. Her Majesty's Courts Service is currently undertaking some analysis of interpreters booked in the last year to try to identify trends in the increase of bookings and subsequent cost.

Departments: Buildings

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what effect she expects the forthcoming reorganisation of her Department to have on the allocation and organisation of Government buildings; and if she will make a statement.

Harriet Harman: In accordance with normal practice for machinery of Government changes, responsibility for those buildings wholly occupied by staff transferring to the Ministry of Justice will also be transferred. Arrangements for building(s) that will be shared between the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice will be managed in accordance with normal practice for jointly occupied buildings that form part of the Government's civil estate.

Departments: Buildings

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what Government buildings the planned Ministry of Justice will share with the Home Office.

Harriet Harman: The Ministry of Justice will share 2 Marsham street with the Home Office.

Departments: Buildings

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether the 50 Queen Anne's Gate building will be home to the Ministry of Justice; and if she will make a statement.

Harriet Harman: 50 Queen Anne's Gate will become the headquarters of the Ministry of Justice.

Departments: Buildings

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will make a statement on the status of the old Home Office building at 50 Queen Anne's Gate.

Harriet Harman: The building is currently being refurbished by the landlord and will become the headquarters of the Ministry of Justice following refurbishment of the building.

Departments: Intimidation

David Simpson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many complaints of bullying have been investigated in her Department in the last 12 months; and how many complaints have been upheld.

Harriet Harman: During the last 12 months (for the period April 2006 to March 2007) the Department for Constitutional Affairs has received 16 official complaints about bullying, of which two were upheld and two were partly upheld.

Electoral Systems

David Laws: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs when the Government will publish its review of electoral systems currently in use in the United Kingdom; and if she will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: The review is currently under way in the Department for Constitutional Affairs. The review will include information on the recent elections for the Northern Ireland Assembly in March 2007 and the up-coming elections for the National Assembly for Wales and the Scottish Parliament this week. It is anticipated that the review will be completed within the lifetime of this Parliament. Ministers will take decisions on any next steps, if necessary, after the review is completed.

Freedom of Information: Complaints

Mike Hancock: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many complaints under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 have been awaiting allocation to a case officer of the Information Commissioner's Offices (ICO) for  (a) three months,  (b) six months,  (c) nine months and  (d) longer, broken down by ICO (i) regional offices and (ii) teams; and if she will make a statement.

Harriet Harman: As of 31 March 2007 the number of complaints under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 awaiting allocation to a case officer at the Information Commissioner's Office, broken down by time and team, was as detailed in the following table.
	
		
			  Time period/team  Belfast  Cardiff  Team 1  Team 2  Team 3  Team 4  Team 5  Team 6  Total 
			 0 to three months 8 19 23 15 51 25 65 36 242 
			 Three to six months 3 0 9 23 19 19 21 27 121 
			 Six to nine months 1 0 12 20 18 18 11 23 103 
			 Nine months + 15 0 12 37 37 6 8 32 147 
			 Total for team 27 19 56 95 125 68 105 118 613 
		
	
	
		
			  Sector  Team name 
			 Health and Transport Team 1 
			 Education, Police and Justice Team 2 
			 Central Government 1 Team3 
			 Local Government 1 (North) Team 4 
			 Local Government 2 (South) Team 5 
			 Central Government Millbank Team 6

Immigration

David Lidington: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs on what date the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal notified  (a) the Home Office and  (b) HM High Commission, Islamabad, of its decision in the case of Mrs. K. U.N., wife of Mr. I. G. of Aylesbury (reference OA/26058/2006), which was heard on 7 February and promulgated on 19 February.

Bridget Prentice: Information shows that the immigration judge determination for appeal reference OA/26058/2006 was served upon the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) of the Home Office on 19 February 2007.
	In entry clearance and family visitor appeals the determination is served upon the Border and Immigration Agency (formerly the Immigration and Nationality Directorate) who will arrange for the forwarding of the determination to the entry clearance post that made the original refusal.
	The Border and Immigration Agency have confirmed that they forwarded a copy of the determination to the high commission in Islamabad on 26 April 2007.

Lord Chancellor's Dept: European Council

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many EU Council meetings the Lord Chancellor has attended since taking up her post; and who represents her if she is unable to attend.

Bridget Prentice: The Department for Constitutional Affairs is represented at EU Justice and Home Affairs Council meetings by my right hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs, Baroness Ashton of Upholland as she is the Minister responsible for EU and international business. She attends all such Council meetings unless there is no business relevant to the Department. Baroness Ashton has attended 16 Council meetings since taking up her post.

Orders and Regulations: Public Libraries

David Drew: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will take steps to ensure that copies of statutory instruments are made available in public libraries in England.

Harriet Harman: Individual public libraries determine the contents of their own stock holdings based on the demands of their users.
	A diminishing number of public libraries take printed copies of legislation, although most libraries allow users to access legislation on the official legislation website at:
	www.opsi.gov.uk

Repossession Orders: Suffolk

David Ruffley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many court orders were issued for the repossession of homes in  (a) Bury St Edmunds constituency and  (b) Suffolk county council area in each year since 1997.

Harriet Harman: The following table shows the number of mortgage possession orders made at each of the Suffolk county courts (Bury St. Edmonds, Ipswich and Lowestoft) since 1997.
	The civil procedure rules provide that all claims for the repossession of land must be commenced in the district in which the land is situated. However, these county courts cover areas that are not necessarily consistent with other administrative or constituency boundaries, and therefore for instance repossessions at Bury St. Edmunds county court may relate to properties in other constituencies besides Bury St. Edmunds.
	These figures do not indicate how many houses have been repossessed through the courts, since not all orders result in the properties actually being repossessed.
	
		
			  Number of mortgage( 1)  possession orders made at Bury St .  Edmunds county court and other Suffolk county courts, 1997-2006 
			   Possession Orders Made( 2) 
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Bury St. Edmunds 56 68 72 37 35 18 48 47 99 117 
			 Ipswich 113 117 136 66 51 60 46 79 123 192 
			 Lowestoft 50 58 37 75 58 54 64 82 125 149 
			 Suffolk 219 243 245 178 144 132 158 208 347 458 
			 (1) Local authority and private (2) The court, following a judicial hearing, may grant an order for possession immediately. This entitles the claimant to apply for a warrant to have the defendant evicted. However, even where a warrant for possession is issued, the parties can still negotiate a compromise to prevent eviction.

TREASURY

Business: Taxation

Iain Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will introduce a unique business reference number for the purposes of allocation, collection, storage and verification of information relating to businesses for the purposes of the payment of taxation; and if he will  (a) bring forward proposals for and  (b) discuss with Cabinet colleagues the use of a single business reference number for firms accessing services delivered across all departments.

John Healey: HMRC is working towards the introduction of a customer index which could provide the basis for a unique business reference number, and which would enable HMRC to bring together a business's tax affairs. Following the recommendations of the Hampton report, the issues relating to services across a range of departments are under consideration by a cross-departmental group of officials.

Cancer

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people in  (a) England and  (b) Great Yarmouth died from cancer in each of the last 30 years for which figures are available, broken down by cancer type.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 2 May 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many people died from cancer in each of the last 30 years for which figures are available in (a) England and (b) Great Yarmouth, broken down by cancer type. (135202)
	Figures for Great Yarmouth can only be calculated from 1981 onwards. The attached tables provide the numbers of deaths where cancer was the underlying cause of death in (a) England from 1976 to 2005 (the latest year available) and (b) Great Yarmouth from 1981 to 2005, by cancer site.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of deaths with cancer as the underlying cause of death,( 1)  England 1976-2005( 2) , by cancer site 
			  Deaths (persons) 
			   1976  1977  1978  1979  1980  1981  1982  1983  1984  1985 
			 All cancers 117,812 117,399 118,780 120,461 121,546 122,341 122,692 124,859 129,989 131,222 
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 1,516 1,422 1,411 1,564 1,495 1,571 1,494 1,589 1,656 1,588 
			 Oesophagus 3,221 3,365 3,448 3,385 3,572 3,583 3,756 3,820 4,050 4,267 
			 Stomach 11,014 10,570 10,674 10,464 10,140 9,854 9,423 9,724 9,557 9,257 
			 Colorectal 16,043 15,423 15,395 15,526 15,548 15,434 15,032 15,565 16,191 16,174 
			 Pancreas 5,296 5,313 5,344 5,546 5,564 5,372 5,372 5,469 5,661 5,675 
			 Larynx 754 691 718 775 755 789 783 714 729 781 
			 Lung 31,774 32,273 32,559 32,890 33,327 32,899 32,944 33,622 33,815 33,849 
			 Melanoma of the skin 739 699 722 751 762 815 897 800 934 920 
			 Breast (female) 11,091 11,080 11,219 11,367 11,417 11,741 11,628 11,879 12,471 12,710 
			 Cervix 2,065 2,002 1,986 1,944 1,939 1,877 1,804 1,815 1,779 1,814 
			 Uterus 1,418 1,412 1,463 1,400 1,416 1,417 1,468 1,408 1,370 1,431 
			 Ovary 3,519 3,471 3,582 3,524 3,524 3,494 3,385 3,514 3,710 3,600 
			 Prostate 4,348 4,371 4,463 4,568 4,732 4,880 4,971 5,310 5,892 6,252 
			 Testis 266 243 201 185 207 154 131 140 149 107 
			 Kidney 1,716 1,701 1,615 1,697 1,682 1,704 1,874 1,931 2,073 2,075 
			 Bladder 4,010 3,998 3,999 3,972 4,013 4,111 4,007 4,201 4,341 4,406 
			 Brain 1,787 1,957 2,025 2,127 2,165 2,025 1,919 2,215 2,385 2,390 
			 Hodgkin's disease 603 613 625 546 535 512 473 452 448 433 
			 Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma 1,723 1,792 1,977 2,004 2,145 2,052 2,236 2,365 2,584 2,680 
			 Multiple myeloma 1,281 1,337 1,385 1,514 1,491 1,533 1,550 1,554 1,788 1,906 
			 All leukaemias 2,985 2,982 3,136 3,086 3,120 3,147 3,258 3,219 3,320 3,439 
		
	
	
		
			  Deaths (persons) 
			   1986  1987  1988  1989  1990  1991  1992  1993  1994  1995 
			 All cancers 130,494 132,115 133,549 134,405 133,941 134,630 134,987 131,460 130,768 130,256 
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 1,537 1,572 1,576 1,601 1,543 1,603 1,593 1,469 1,650 1,497 
			 Oesophagus 4,242 4,483 4,528 4,650 4,890 4,951 5,035 5,257 5,334 5,427 
			 Stomach 8,995 8,858 8,719 8,440 8,083 7,805 7,686 6,987 7,007 6,511 
			 Colorectal 15,724 15,987 16,133 16,279 16,156 16,007 16,285 15,038 14,803 14,675 
			 Pancreas 5,631 5,733 5,628 5,712 5,762 5,661 5,661 5,522 5,439 5,476 
			 Larynx 785 816 791 807 749 792 825 799 771 755 
			 Lung 33,243 33,148 33,281 32,465 32,305 32,169 31,603 30,524 30,121 29,711 
			 Melanoma of the skin 976 969 1,027 1,027 1,091 1,090 1,065 1,311 1,290 1,301 
			 Breast (female) 12,825 12,901 12,851 13,108 12,825 12,979 12,803 12,197 12,015 11,772 
			 Cervix 1,858 1,763 1,809 1,692 1,653 1,531 1,532 1,377 1,265 1,256 
			 Uterus 1,369 1,355 1,358 1,358 1,349 1,381 1,292 1,209 1,173 1,226 
			 Ovary 3,622 3,704 3,570 3,717 3,781 3,625 3,643 3,587 3,612 3,647 
			 Prostate 6,511 6,750 7,051 7,411 7,635 8,032 8,257 8,100 8,170 8,259 
			 Testis 116 131 134 108 117 104 117 94 71 79 
			 Kidney 2,095 2,127 2,138 2,228 2,269 2,393 2,417 2,386 2,395 2,508 
			 Bladder 4,446 4,344 4,521 4,510 4,668 4,621 4,810 4,500 4,516 4,542 
			 Brain 2,269 2,426 2,481 2,546 2,534 2,493 2,679 2,453 2,437 2,481 
			 Hodgkin's disease 426 433 401 361 348 341 364 326 252 281 
			 Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma 2,818 3,023 3,243 3,279 3,355 3,470 3,583 3,544 3,589 3,725 
			 Multiple myeloma 1,864 2,019 1,995 2,129 1,970 2,006 1,969 2,070 1,974 2,067 
			 All leukaemias 3,312 3,396 3,409 3,469 3,238 3,391 3,326 3,312 3,265 3,272 
		
	
	
		
			  Deaths (persons) 
			   1996  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 All cancers 128,886 127,040 127,564 125,527 124,208 127,076 128,171 127,259 129,057 126,606 
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 1,555 1,576 1,570 1,549 1,530 1,572 1,581 1,472 1,619 1,598 
			 Oesophagus 5,429 5,439 5,558 5,675 5,673 5,668 5,910 6,002 5,899 6,087 
			 Stomach 6,270 6,151 5,963 5,667 5,365 5,197 5,171 4,894 4,708 4,582 
			 Colorectal 14,415 14,190 13,962 13,613 13,223 13,182 13,387 13,079 13,217 13,191 
			 Pancreas 5,478 5,421 5,444 5,579 5,695 5,663 5,726 5,841 5,887 6,093 
			 Larynx 744 730 685 684 655 706 686 678 627 606 
			 Lung 28,974 28,130 28,360 27,671 27,245 26,922 27,031 27,005 26,453 26,937 
			 Melanoma of the skin 1,291 1,315 1,388 1,377 1,445 1,380 1,383 1,466 1,478 1,530 
			 Breast (female) 11,424 11,241 11,004 10,856 10,609 10,846 10,789 10,489 10,295 10,346 
			 Cervix 1,225 1,150 1,078 1,034 1,035 947 926 888 899 837 
			 Uterus 1,216 1,207 1,208 1,153 1,243 1,292 1,271 1,306 1,351 1,368 
			 Ovary 3,864 3,747 3,744 3,691 3,669 3,877 3,922 3,805 3,655 3,694 
			 Prostate 8,219 7,977 8,067 8,048 7,786 8,286 8,440 8,582 8,533 8,520 
			 Testis 95 64 71 71 63 55 56 70 64 61 
			 Kidney 2,402 2,511 2,549 2,538 2,548 2,642 2,755 2,813 2,947 2,941 
			 Bladder 4,310 4,280 4,212 4,102 4,173 4,172 4,160 4,131 4,065 3,906 
			 Brain 2,550 2,617 2,633 2,630 2,694 2,779 2,720 2,772 2,826 2,775 
			 Hodgkin's disease 275 245 246 226 223 211 238 270 265 232 
			 Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma 3,690 3,677 3,720 3,762 3,785 3,858 4,021 3,917 3,738 3,781 
			 Multiple myeloma 2,027 1,934 2,097 2,033 1,886 2,187 2,260 2,307 2,205 2,158 
			 All leukaemias 3,233 3,310 3,292 3,425 3,318 3,515 3,620 3,665 3,555 3,620 
			 (1 )Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Eighth Revision (ICD-8) for the years 1976-78, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) for the years 1979 to 2000, and Tenth Revision (ICD-10) for 2001 onwards. The introduction of ICD-9 in 1979 and ICD-10 in 2001 means that the numbers of deaths from specific causes are not completely comparable across the whole period. The ICD codes for each cancer site are given in the following table. (2) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year. 
		
	
	
		
			  Box 1: Cancer sites, International Classification of Diseases, Eighth, Ninth and Tenth Revisions 
			   ICD-8 (1976-78)  ICD-9 (1979-2000)  ICD-10 (2001-05) 
			 All cancers 140-205 140-208 C00-97 
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 140-149 140-149 C00-C14 
			 Oesophagus 150 150 C15 
			 Stomach 151 151 C16 
			 Colorectal 153-154 153-154 C18-C21 
			 Pancreas 157 157 C25 
			 Larynx 161 161 C32 
			 Lung 162 162 C33-C34 
			 Melanoma of the skin 172 172 C43 
			 Breast (female) 174 174 C50 
			 Cervix 180 180 C53 
			 Uterus 182 182 C54-C55 
			 Ovary 183 183 C56-C57 
			 Prostate 185 185 C61 
			 Testis 186 186 C62 
			 Kidney 189 189 C64-C66, C68 
			 Bladder 188 188 C67 
			 Brain 191 191 C71 
			 Hodgkin's disease 201 201 C81 
			 Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma 200, 202 200, 202 C82-C85, C91.4, C96 
			 Multiple myeloma 203 203 C90 
			 All leukaemias 204-207 204-208 C91-C95 ex. C91.4 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of deaths with cancer as the underlying cause of death,( 1)  Great Yarmouth 1981-2005( 2, 3) , by cancer site 
			  Deaths (persons) 
			   1981  1982  1983  1984  1985  1986  1987  1988  1989  1990  1991  1992  1993 
			 All cancers 235 254 265 279 269 260 239 299 269 302 283 298 287 
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 0 3 2 6 6 4 2 3 2 1 1 5 3 
			 Oesophagus 3 6 9 5 8 9 5 10 13 8 11 11 11 
			 Stomach 27 16 16 15 24 28 27 22 19 23 13 23 21 
			 Colorectal 21 36 29 34 34 37 26 37 29 43 35 41 35 
			 Pancreas 11 7 7 14 8 9 6 14 8 14 11 11 8 
			 Larynx 0 4 1 3 4 1 2 2 0 1 3 0 1 
			 Lung 61 71 81 68 59 69 55 86 64 61 74 65 64 
			 Melanoma of the skin 2 1 2 2 1 3 2 2 2 1 3 1 5 
			 Breast (female) 24 10 25 30 29 25 27 20 30 38 31 20 34 
			 Cervix 4 1 3 2 3 6 4 1 5 4 5 3 1 
			 Uterus 1 3 2 2 4 2 3 1 1 0 2 3 3 
			 Ovary 9 8 10 10 10 5 4 11 6 7 8 7 6 
			 Prostate 9 18 6 17 10 15 19 15 17 24 16 27 19 
			 Testis 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 0 
			 Kidney 0 2 3 3 4 5 6 5 6 6 2 7 7 
			 Bladder 11 9 16 7 16 5 4 9 12 13 9 12 6 
			 Brain 6 5 6 2 7 4 6 10 6 6 5 5 7 
			 Hodgkin's disease 1 2 2 0 2 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 
			 Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma 3 7 7 10 5 4 8 8 3 7 7 7 8 
			 Multiple myeloma 3 2 3 7 3 3 1 5 4 7 5 7 4 
			 All leukaemias 7 4 4 8 5 3 6 5 7 6 8 4 6 
		
	
	—continued
	
		
			   1994  1995  1996  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 All cancers 274 299 275 268 281 280 287 279 259 263 287 299 
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 3 4 2 1 3 2 2 1 6 2 2 2 
			 Oesophagus 12 16 11 3 13 22 14 11 14 4 7 18 
			 Stomach 21 20 15 12 13 12 16 7 8 10 11 10 
			 Colorectal 29 32 27 30 30 27 28 29 39 25 36 30 
			 Pancreas 13 9 9 5 12 17 10 10 4 9 26 15 
			 Larynx 2 5 1 0 2 2 1 4 4 2 2 4 
			 Lung 57 73 72 67 64 55 58 63 44 57 62 60 
			 Melanoma of the skin 4 2 2 2 2 3 5 1 3 4 5 2 
			 Breast (female) 22 28 25 23 19 24 14 23 22 20 24 22 
			 Cervix 2 1 4 8 4 2 4 1 3 2 1 0 
			 Uterus 0 2 0 4 2 1 5 2 3 2 7 7 
			 Ovary 6 2 8 5 5 11 6 9 5 7 8 8 
			 Prostate 32 25 16 19 17 26 21 27 22 30 16 25 
			 Testis 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Kidney 4 4 3 3 2 7 11 10 8 8 5 12 
			 Bladder 9 11 14 18 14 9 8 11 5 11 11 6 
			 Brain 4 4 6 3 11 5 3 5 5 3 7 8 
			 Hodgkin's disease 0 2 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 1 
			 Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma 4 8 8 8 11 5 9 7 10 16 7 9 
			 Multiple myeloma 6 3 0 5 4 1 5 5 4 6 3 4 
			 All leukaemias 7 5 8 10 5 6 14 7 2 9 3 8 
			 (1 )Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) for the years 1981 to 2000, and Tenth Revision (ICD-10) for 2001 onwards. The introduction of ICD-10 in 2001 means that the numbers of deaths from specific causes before 2001 are not completely comparable across the whole period. The ICD codes for each cancer site are given in the following table. (2) Based on local authority boundaries as of 2007. (3) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year. 
		
	
	
		
			  Box 1: Cancer sites, International Classification of Diseases, Ninth and Tenth Revisions 
			   ICD-9 (1979-2000)  ICD-10 (2001-05) 
			 All cancers 140-208 C00-97 
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 140-149 C00-C14 
			 Oesophagus 150 C15 
			 Stomach 151 C16 
			 Colorectal 153-154 C18-C21 
			 Pancreas 157 C25 
			 Larynx 161 C32 
			 Lung 162 C33-C34 
			 Melanoma of the skin 172 C43 
			 Breast (female) 174 C50 
			 Cervix 180 C53 
			 Uterus 182 C54-C55 
			 Ovary 183 C56-C57 
			 Prostate 185 C61 
			 Testis 186 C62 
			 Kidney 189 C64-C66, C68 
			 Bladder 188 C67 
			 Brain 191 C71 
			 Hodgkin's disease 201 C81 
			 Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma 200, 202 C82-C85, C91.4, C96 
			 Multiple myeloma 203 C90 
			 All leukaemias 204-208 C91-C95 ex. C91.4

Cancer

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people in  (a) England and  (b) Great Yarmouth were diagnosed with cancer in each of the last 30 years for which figures are available, broken down by cancer type.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 2 May 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many people were diagnosed with cancer in each of the last 30 years for which figures are available in (a) England and (b) Great Yarmouth, broken down by cancer type.
	The latest available figures for newly diagnosed cases (incidence) of cancer in England are for the year 2004. Figures for (a) England from 1975-2004 are given in Table 1 and (b) Great Yarmouth local authority from 1990-2004 are given in Table 2. Earlier figures for Great Yarmouth are not readily available.
	
		
			  Table 1 :  Registrations of newly diagnosed cases of cancer, England, 1975-2004: 21 most common cancers by site( 1) 
			  Persons 
			   1975  1976  1977  1978  1979  1980  1981  1982  1983  1984 
			 All cancers 154,810 157,510 162,270 167,970 168,915 170,379 175,740 177,661 181,501 187,958 
			 All cancers xnmsc(2) 139,963 142,209 146,840 152,033 152,475 152,727 157,329 158,660 162,726 168,115 
			
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 2,907 3,030 2,816 2,997 2,986 2,885 2,778 2,681 2,786 2,832 
			 Oesophagus 2,851 2,964 3,082 3,188 3,349 3,403 3,489 3,622 3,391 3,607 
			 Stomach 11,526 11,315 11,501 11,361 11,742 11,110 11,384 11,411 11,237 11,524 
			 Colorectal 19,170 19,414 20,255 20,718 21,198 21,169 21,504 21,996 22,167 22,891 
			 Pancreas 4,656 4,587 4,737 5,021 5,041 5,128 5,189 5,364 5,624 5,466 
			 Larynx 1,443 1,480 1,501 1,607 1,577 1,603 1,588 1,625 1,637 1,652 
			 Lung 29,785 29,742 31,043 31,960 31,912 32,330 33,492 33,395 34,359 34,817 
			 Melanoma of the skin 1,097 1,242 1,372 1,444 1,503 1,553 1,560 1,674 1,822 1,960 
			 Breast (female) 17,647 18,709 19,165 20,287 19,603 19,118 19,803 20,339 20,166 21,175 
			 Cervix 3,794 3,650 3,710 3,642 3,618 3,526 3,554 3,475 3,630 3,772 
			 Uterus 2,997 3,011 3,161 3,216 3,231 3,464 3,333 3,300 3,335 3,385 
			 Ovary 3,842 3,852 3,723 3,956 3,901 3,938 4,164 4,046 4,160 4,356 
			 Prostate 5,789 5,963 6,363 6,742 6,861 7,066 7,429 7,289 7,972 8,440 
			 Testis 612 637 662 704 714 706 729 797 731 826 
			 Kidney 2,086 2,118 2,245 2,316 2,447 2,366 2,532 2,498 2,573 2,692 
			 Bladder 6,918 6,951 7,219 7,270 7,256 7,363 7,840 7,909 8,445 8,729 
			 Brain 2,209 2,148 1,997 2,097 2,030 2,028 2,147 2,075 2,424 2,480 
			 Hodgkin's Lymphoma 1,246 1,382 1,337 1,348 1,270 1,284 1,295 1,279 1,164 1,287 
			 Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma 2,131 2,260 2,432 2,521 2,772 2,721 2,887 2,927 3,265 3,490 
			 Multiple Myeloma 1,265 1,331 1,357 1,603 1,562 1,593 1,728 1,778 1,846 1,913 
			 Leukaemia 3,565 3,844 4,011 4,226 4,183 4,110 4,389 4,326 3,956 4,042 
		
	
	
		
			  Persons 
			   1985  1986  1987  1988  1989  1990  1991  1992  1993  1994 
			 All cancers 193,697 194,834 199,314 199,315 213,663 212,041 217,472 225,509 225,553 227,126 
			 All cancers xnmsc(2) 172,388 173,606 176,575 176,800 188,084 184,507 189,538 194,770 194,533 196,487 
			
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 2,865 2,876 2,926 2,883 2,905 2,836 2,965 3,019 2,859 3,059 
			 Oesophagus 3,818 3,924 3,904 4,128 4,280 4,339 4,603 4,744 4,785 4,981 
			 Stomach 11,421 11,090 11,306 10,789 11,110 10,706 10,427 10,409 10,168 9,685 
			 Colorectal 23,730 23,631 24,263 24,026 25,015 24,483 25,104 25,851 26,119 26,203 
			 Pancreas 5,532 5,627 5,646 5,542 5,911 5,731 5,784 5,810 5,837 5,812 
			 Larynx 1,666 1,705 1,656 1,738 1,750 1,759 1,861 1,923 1,873 1,846 
			 Lung 35,466 35,558 35,758 35,035 37,095 35,290 35,399 35,716 34,451 34,262 
			 Melanoma of the skin 2,136 2,220 2,375 2,365 2,994 2,999 3,432 3,879 3,613 3,505 
			 Breast (female) 21,326 21,722 21,851 21,833 24,032 23,805 24,803 25,161 26,702 27,474 
			 Cervix 3,782 3,706 3,672 3,793 4,053 4,025 3,988 4,039 3,790 3,884 
			 Uterus 3,436 3,416 3,378 3,388 3,570 3,483 3,404 3,546 3,557 3,583 
			 Ovary 4,332 4,337 4,540 4,484 4,744 4,636 4,852 4,776 4,807 4,732 
			 Prostate 8,784 9,161 9,534 9,672 10,534 10,805 11,151 11,837 11,891 12,518 
			 Testis 886 865 841 953 1,025 1,084 1,128 1,187 1,227 1,199 
			 Kidney 2,824 2,980 3,135 3,157 3,289 3,232 3,394 3,528 3,827 3,908 
			 Bladder 9,150 9,083 9,404 9,574 10,242 10,066 10,165 10,706 10,654 10,678 
			 Brain 2,549 2,450 2,601 2,661 2,788 2,687 2,832 2,932 2,975 2,948 
			 Hodgkin's Lymphoma 1,207 1,177 1,167 1,148 1,250 1,185 1,137 1,114 1,100 1,130 
			 Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma 3,711 3,788 3,977 4,225 4,671 4,757 5,114 5,570 5,601 5,733 
			 Multiple Myeloma 2,018 2,063 2,152 2,218 2,516 2,353 2,530 2,615 2,508 2,463 
			 Leukaemia 4,277 4,307 4,477 4,483 4,844 4,443 4,683 5,034 4,883 4,810 
		
	
	
		
			  Persons 
			   1995  1996  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004 
			 All cancers 231,915 240,885 237,278 243,285 245,012 245,358 251,775 263,207 267,805 272,992 
			 All cancers xnmsc(2) 199,844 206,735 204,875 209,164 209,137 209,564 211,624 216,702 221,064 223,609 
			
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 3,114 3,353 3,225 3,396 3,302 3,424 3,615 3,670 3,990 4,090 
			 Oesophagus 5,050 5,371 5,397 5,611 5,497 5,476 5,672 5,730 5,893 6,033 
			 Stomach 9,369 9,448 8,983 8,914 8,614 8,365 8,455 8,170 7,875 7,865 
			 Colorectal 26,185 27,617 26,970 26,983 27,007 27,872 27,884 29,021 29,088 28,902 
			 Pancreas 5,919 5,809 5,720 5,642 5,629 5,607 5,527 5,529 5,882 5,924 
			 Larynx 1,809 1,890 1,871 1,951 1,794 1,799 1,812 1,790 1,769 1,903 
			 Lung 34,227 34,928 33,356 33,317 32,728 31,396 31,285 31,327 31,137 31,090 
			 Melanoma of the skin 3,559 3,893 4,429 4,465 4,577 4,487 4,703 5,000 5,041 5,821 
			 Breast (female) 29,116 29,665 28,618 29,490 29,904 30,412 31,380 32,908 34,176 33,829 
			 Cervix 3,340 3,171 3,090 2,976 2,837 2,737 2,607 2,594 2,642 2,424 
			 Uterus 3,695 3,673 3,754 3,822 3,850 3,932 4,016 4,086 4,298 4,730 
			 Ovary 4,923 4,924 4,920 4,929 5,368 5,408 5,621 5,653 5,569 5,512 
			 Prostate 13,339 14,809 16,022 18,204 17,973 18,837 18,201 19,335 20,842 23,109 
			 Testis 1,268 1,316 1,338 1,303 1,464 1,423 1,411 1,541 1,676 1,648 
			 Kidney 3,952 4,139 4,217 4,434 4,317 4,500 4,833 4,749 4,860 5,084 
			 Bladder 10,730 11,190 11,211 11,028 11,207 10,614 10,387 10,528 10,524 9,221 
			 Brain 2,969 3,329 3,263 3,269 3,408 3,358 3,471 3,462 3,461 3,706 
			 Hodgkin's Lymphoma 1,019 1,154 1,108 1,104 1,063 1,054 1,068 1,187 1,150 1,254 
			 Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma 6,080 6,253 6,303 6,669 6,559 6,607 6,821 7,187 7,646 7,811 
			 Multiple Myeloma 2,610 2,645 2,664 2,693 2,899 2,729 2,650 3,128 3,145 3,295 
			 Leukaemia 4,891 4,862 5,021 5,147 5,284 4,952 4,981 5,306 5,397 5,549 
			 (1) Cancers are coded to the International Classification of Diseases (Eighth, Ninth and Tenth Revisions). (2) All cancers except Non-melanoma of skin.  Source: Office for National Statistics 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2 :  Registrations of newly diagnosed cases of cancer in the local authority of Great Yarmouth, 1990-2004: 21 most common cancers, by site( 1) 
			  Persons 
			   1990  1991  1992  1993  1994  1995  1996  1997 
			 All cancers 508 532 579 519 523 552 529 565 
			 All cancers xnmsc(2) 405 430 442 415 411 430 425 421 
			  
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 10 6 10 8 9 8 6 8 
			 Oesophagus 6 5 9 9 7 11 9 5 
			 Stomach 31 17 24 21 24 28 15 19 
			 Colorectal 66 64 67 56 69 52 55 57 
			 Pancreas 9 13 10 9 16 9 9 7 
			 Larynx 3 1 6 2 8 4 6 3 
			 Lung 51 74 70 73 58 79 70 55 
			 Melanoma of the skin 8 5 9 15 14 7 9 10 
			 Breast (female) 55 63 64 72 52 57 56 70 
			 Cervix 9 6 7 2 10 6 10 9 
			 Uterus 7 10 8 9 7 10 9 14 
			 Ovary 7 13 7 7 8 12 9 8 
			 Prostate 31 43 32 36 40 31 47 37 
			 Testis 0 4 1 6 4 2 2 4 
			 Kidney 11 4 13 7 2 5 10 11 
			 Bladder 17 20 17 11 17 25 24 20 
			 Brain 7 7 9 6 3 6 6 9 
			 Hodgkin's Lymphoma 1 2 3 1 1 3 1 3 
			 Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma 16 11 11 8 14 14 15 10 
			 Multiple Myeloma 6 7 5 6 5 6 4 7 
			 Leukaemia 11 9 7 7 6 7 8 9 
		
	
	
		
			  Persons 
			   1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004 
			 All cancers 601 632 626 684 609 706 650 
			 All cancers xnmsc(2) 464 492 475 520 459 546 504 
			 
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 7 6 9 7 10 11 4 
			 Oesophagus 18 23 15 15 9 9 14 
			 Stomach 22 20 13 15 17 17 12 
			 Colorectal 51 65 59 78 66 74 68 
			 Pancreas 13 15 13 7 6 19 19 
			 Larynx 3 2 5 4 6 5 4 
			 Lung 69 61 64 75 53 63 67 
			 Melanoma of the skin 21 10 10 8 14 25 20 
			 Breast (female) 59 86 62 77 68 95 71 
			 Cervix 6 4 2 1 8 4 6 
			 Uterus 8 14 13 13 23 19 6 
			 Ovary 13 9 13 17 2 7 10 
			 Prostate 47 60 58 63 67 54 52 
			 Testis 4 3 5 0 3 2 8 
			 Kidney 9 13 17 14 19 17 11 
			 Bladder 18 17 22 28 13 21 29 
			 Brain 10 7 7 4 9 5 7 
			 Hodgkin's Lymphoma 1 4 3 3 1 2 3 
			 Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma 17 6 14 13 9 24 28 
			 Multiple Myeloma 5 6 5 17 8 5 5 
			 Leukaemia 11 19 14 10 7 21 10 
			 (1) Cancers are coded to the International Classification of Diseases (Ninth and Tenth Revisions). (2) All cancers except Non-melanoma of skin.  Source: Office for National Statistics 
		
	
	
		
			  Cancers are coded to the International Classification of Diseases (8( th) , 9( th)  and 10( th)  revisions) 
			   ICD-8  ICD-9  ICD-10 
			 All cancers 140-207 140-208 C00-97 
			 All cancers xnmsc 140-172, 174-207 140-172, 174-208 C00-43, C45-97 
			 Colorectal 153-154 153-154 C18-21 
			 Stomach 151 151 C16 
			 Oesophagus 150 150 C15 
			 Lip, mouth and pharynx 140-149 140-149 C00-14 
			 Pancreas 157 157 C25 
			 Larynx 161 161 C32 
			 Lung 162 162 C33-34 
			 Melanoma 172 172 C43 
			 Breast 174 174 C50 
			 Cervix 180 180 C53 
			 Uterus 182.0 182 C54 
			 Ovary 183 183 C56-57 
			 Prostate 185 185 C61 
			 Testis 186 186 C62 
			 Kidney 189 189 C64-66, C68 
			 Bladder 188 188 C67 
			 Brain 191 191 C71 
			 Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma 200, 202 200, 202 C82-85, C91.4, C96 
			 Hodgkin's Lymphoma 201 201 C81 
			 Multiple Myeloma 203 203 C88, C90 
			 Leukaemia 204-207 204-208 C91-91.3, C91.5-C95

Child Trust Fund

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 17 April 2007,  Official Report, column 689W, on the child trust fund, how much time Sheree Murphy spent  (a) giving interviews and  (b) participating in photoshoots to promote child trust funds.

Edward Balls: Sheree Murphy was contracted for four and a half days to give interviews and participate in photoshoots to promote Child Trust Funds.

Corporation Tax

David Gauke: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the potential reductions in  (a) corporation and  (b) income tax avoidance from the increase in the rate of corporation tax announced in the Budget 2007.

John Healey: The increase in the small companies' rate of corporation tax will reduce the tax advantage for a self-employed person to incorporate and receive labour income as dividends. This impact increases corporation tax collected but reduces income tax and national insurance collected.
	The measure will increase the corporation tax paid by those who have incorporated for tax reasons and will reduce the incentive for others to engage in this behaviour. The reduction in overall tax advantage depends on income level. For a self-employed person earning £30,000, the incentive to incorporate and take labour income as dividends will reduced by around £1,000 by 2009-10.
	As the Chancellor noted in his Budget speech, if the tax-motivated incorporation is not tackled, it could cost the rest of the tax-paying population billions of pounds.

Cabinet Office Capability Review

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether a Cabinet Office Capability Review is planned for HM Treasury.

John Healey: I refer to the answer given to the hon. Member for Tatton (Mr. Osborne) on 13 September 2006,  Official Report, column 2335W.

Departments: Africa

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 14 March 2007,  Official Report, column 407W, on Departments: Africa, where  (a) he and  (b) his officials stayed in each country for each trip in January 2005.

John Healey: The Chancellor visited Africa in January 2005 in preparation for the G7 focus on development which, under the UK presidency, led to a pledge to double aid to Africa by 2010. The delegation stayed in the following cities:
	Dar Es Salaam (Tanzania)
	Maputo (Mozambique)
	Johannesburg (RSA) and
	Cape Town (RSA).

Departments: Consultants

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many external consultants are employed by his Department;
	(2)  how much his Department spent on external consultants in each year since 1997.

John Healey: HM Treasury controls consultancy spending by cost, and not by headcount. Information on the total number of consultants engaged at any point in time is not held. The provisional outturn for the total spent on external consultants in 2006-07 by HM Treasury is £5.14 million. I refer to the answers given to my hon. Friend the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne, Central (Mr. Cousins) on 14 March 2006,  Official Report, column 2128W and the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 29 November 2006,  Official Report, column 721W, which detail consultancy costs for the financial years 2000-06. Figures for the years prior to 2000-01 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	In line with Office of Government Commerce guidance, in 2006-07 HM Treasury changed its definition of 'consultancy' to include advice on design and development of services, but exclude delivery of services on a longer term contracted out basis. Figures for prior years have not been restated.

Departments: Grievance Procedures

David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many complaints of bullying have been investigated in his Department in the last 12 months; and how many complaints have been upheld;
	(2)  how many grievance procedures have been initiated in his Department in the last 12 months;
	(3)  how many complaints of sexual harassment have been investigated in his Department in the last 12 months; and how many complaints have been upheld.

John Healey: In the last 12 months fewer than five grievances have been raised and investigated. No complaints of bullying or of sexual harassment have been upheld. As the number of complaints of bullying and of sexual harassment was fewer than five, the exact number cannot be disclosed on grounds of confidentiality.

Departments: India

Oliver Heald: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which Ministers in his Department have visited India in the last 12 months; on how many occasions each Minister visited India; and what the length was of each visit.

John Healey: The Chancellor of the Exchequer visited India in January 2007. All ministerial visits are conducted in accordance with the "Ministerial Code" and "Travel by Ministers". Since 1999, the Government have published on an annual basis a list of overseas travel by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500 and the total cost of all ministerial travel. Information for 2006-07 will be published as soon as possible after the end of the financial year.

Departments: Paper

David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of paper used  (a) for photocopying and  (b) in printed publications by his Department was from recycled sources in each of the last three years.

John Healey: For details of the percentage of such paper used for photocopying and publications issued in the year 2004-05, I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 21 October 2005,  Official Report, column 1306W. Our policy has not changed.
	From 2005 to present, the Treasury's Publishing Unit used recycled paper for all standard format publications and printed materials.

Departments: Plants

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies spent on the supply and maintenance of plants and flowers in 2006-07.

John Healey: The provisional outturn for the Treasury's expenditure on the supply and maintenance of plants and flowers is £15,000 in 2006-07. The Debt Management Office spent £2,000.

Departments: Press

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department spent on newspapers and periodicals in 2006-07.

John Healey: The provisional outturn for the Treasury's expenditure on newspapers and periodicals in 2006-07 was £109,000.

Departments: Visits Abroad

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department spent on overseas travel in each year since 1997.

John Healey: The provisional outturn for the total spent by the Treasury on overseas travel in 2006-07 was £1,573,000. For the earlier years, I refer to the answers given to the hon. Member for Rayleigh (Mr. Francois) on 29 November 2006,  Official Report, column 719W, and to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 19 July 2004,  Official Report, column 44W.

Duty Free Allowances

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent progress has been made by the European Commission on his proposal to increase the duty free allowance to £1,000; what recent representations he has received on this issue; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 16 April 2007,  Official Report, column 402W, to my hon. Friend the hon. Member from Cannock Chase (Dr. Wright).
	HMT and HMRC Officials met stakeholders during negotiation of the new tax free allowance for travellers returning from outside the EU. We have also received a small number of letters regarding implementation of the higher allowance since it was agreed.

Excise Duties: Motor Vehicles

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was raised through vehicle excise duty in each year since 1997.

John Healey: The Department for Transport publish statistics of Vehicle Excise Duty revenues which are broken down into vehicle category in their annual transport statistics bulletin. This is available at:
	www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics

Group of Seven

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was spent on his Department's delegation to attend the last G7 Finance Ministers' meeting in Washington DC.

John Healey: All ministerial visits are conducted in accordance with the "Ministerial Code" and "Travel by Ministers". Since 1999, the Government have published on an annual basis a list of overseas travel by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500 and the total cost of all ministerial travel. Information for 2006-07 will be published as soon as possible after the end of the financial year.

Managed Service Companies

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will place in the Library a copy of the responses to the consultation tackling managed service companies of December 2006.

John Healey: The Government have received a Freedom of Information request for the same information from the hon. Member.
	The Treasury is actively considering issues around the confidentiality of the information provided by the respondents to the consultation and will reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

Middle East

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when a Minister in his Department last visited  (a) Bahrain,  (b) Kuwait,  (c) Oman,  (d) Qatar,  (e) Saudi Arabia,  (f) the United Arab Emirates and  (g) Yemen on official business.

John Healey: All ministerial visits are conducted in accordance with the "Ministerial Code" and "Travel by Ministers". Since 1999, the Government have published on an annual basis a list of overseas travel by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500 and the total cost of all ministerial travel. Information for 2006-07 will be published as soon as possible after the end of the financial year. I can confirm that the Chancellor attended the International Monetary and Financial Committee meetings in Dubai in September 2003 and passed through Dubai in March 2007. The Chancellor visited Riyadh in November 2005 and passed through Abu Dhabi en route. The Chancellor also passed through Kuwait in November 2006. The Economic Secretary visited the United Arab Emirates in November 2006 and the Paymaster General visited the United Arab Emirates in January 2007.

Money Laundering

Mark Durkan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he plans to establish a new unit within HM Revenue and Customs to deal with cases of money laundering.

John Healey: HMRC already has units responsible for dealing with money laundering. Action to combat money laundering is an integral part of HMRC's operational efforts to counter fiscal fraud against the UK's tax and duty systems and to protect the integrity of the UK's frontier controls. In addition, a unit is being created to deal with HMRC's specific regulatory responsibility relating to the licensing regime that becomes mandatory in December 2007 under the Third Money Laundering Directive.

Multiple Sclerosis

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people died from multiple sclerosis in  (a) Jarrow constituency,  (b) South Tyneside,  (c) the North East and  (d) England in each year since 1997.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 2 May 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many people died from multiple sclerosis in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England in each year since 1997. (135315)
	The table attached provides the number of deaths where multiple sclerosis was the underlying cause in (a) Jarrow parliamentary constituency, (b) South Tyneside local authority, (c) North East government office region and (d) England, from 1997 to 2005 (the latest year available).
	
		
			  Number of deaths with multiple sclerosis as the underlying cause of death( 1) , Jarrow parliamentary constituency. South Tyneside local authority. North-east Government office region, England( 2) , 1997 to 2005( 3) 
			  Deaths (persons) 
			   Jarrow  South Tyneside  North East  England 
			 1997 1 3 30 661 
			 1998 0 0 38 698 
			 1999 0 1 39 723 
			 2000 1 1 31 659 
			 2001 1 1 44 849 
			 2002 0 0 35 861 
			 2003 1 2 61 935 
			 2004 2 4 49 838 
			 2005 1 3 50 900 
			 (1) Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) code 340 for the years 1996 to 2000, and Tenth Revision (ICD-10) code G35 for 2001 onwards. The introduction of ICD-10 in 2001 means that the numbers of deaths from this cause before 2001 are not completely comparable with later years. (2) Based on local authority boundaries as of 2007. (3) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year.

National Insurance Contributions

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 19 February 2007,  Official Report, column 485W, on national insurance contributions, what steps he has taken to rectify letters relating to the non-payment of national insurance contributions in the 2004-05 tax year sent in error.

John Healey: During 2006-07, HM Revenue and Customs sent 4.7 million letters to customers advising them of a potential shortfall in their National insurance contributions for the 2004-05 tax year. The majority of these letters were correct but some contained incorrect information.
	HMRC contacted many of the employers involved and also worked closely with representative bodies to inform their members. The vast majority of the 2004-05 end of year information has now been processed successfully. Where a letter had been sent in error, HMRC has either sent, or is in the process of sending, a follow-up letter explaining that sufficient NI contributions have been paid and that 2004-05 is now a qualifying year for benefit purposes.
	Any employees who are still waiting for a follow-up letter, or are unsure of their NI position, can send a copy of their 2004-05 P60 to the address on the deficiency notice and HMRC will investigate their case.

Patients: Hemel Hempstead

Michael Penning: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions the Office for National Statistics has had with Dacorum Primary Care Trust on the number of patients registered in Hemel Hempstead constituency.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 2 May 2007:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your question regarding what discussions the Office for National Statistics has had with Dacorum Primary Care Trust on the number of patients registered in Hemel Hempstead constituency. (135326)
	I can confirm that we have had two data requests from Dacorum PCT with regards to population estimates. Other than this I am not aware of Dacorum PCT contacting ONS with regards to the number of patients registered in Hemel Hempstead constituency.

Revenue and Customs: Great Yarmouth

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many HM Revenue and Customs staff were employed in Great Yarmouth in each year since 1997.

John Healey: Before HM Revenue and Customs was created in April 2005, HM Customs and Excise and Inland Revenue both had offices at Great Yarmouth. The following table shows the total staff employed at Great Yarmouth for HM Revenue and Customs (and for the component Departments prior to 2005) as at 1 April each year from 2001. No records exist for previous years.
	
		
			   Staff numbers (headcount) 
			 2001 210 
			 2002 197 
			 2003 193 
			 2004 190 
			 2005 186 
			 2006 176 
			 2007 153

Revenue and Customs: Great Yarmouth

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate has been made of the cost implications caused by rent charges of moving HM Revenue and Customs staff from Great Yarmouth to Norwich.

John Healey: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is undertaking a review of all its accommodation to bring it into line with business requirements, and expects to make substantial savings on its accommodation running costs.
	The review of the cluster of HMRC offices comprising Great Yarmouth, Norwich and East Dereham is planned to take place later this year. No such estimate has yet been made. No decisions on the future of any of these offices will be made until the review process is completed.

Revenue and Customs: Pay

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether any HM Revenue and Customs inspectors receive incentive payments related to their collection of revenue.

John Healey: HM Revenue and Customs inspectors do not receive payments related to the collection of revenue.

Robert Shrum

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what work Robert Shrum has undertaken for HM Treasury since 1997.

John Healey: None. HM Treasury has not contracted Robert Shrum to do any work.

Sequestration of Assets: Iran

Mike Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will sequester appropriate assets of the government of Iran as compensation for Ministry of Defence equipment seized and not returned in  (a) 2004 and  (b) 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Des Browne: I have been asked to reply.
	We will continue to press the Iranian authorities for the return of the boats and equipment seized by Iran in 2004 and 2007.

Small Businesses: Government Assistance

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department is taking to foster the growth and development of small and medium sized enterprises.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 26 April 2007
	 I have been asked to reply.
	I refer the hon. Member to the statement I made to the House on 26 October 2006,  Official Report, column 95WS. As my statement indicated, a wide range of activity is in hand and if any particular area interests the hon. Member I will be happy to update him.

Taxation

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department takes to inform people that they may be eligible to reclaim tax; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 27 April 2007,  Official Report, columns 1370-71W.

VAT: Bingo

Nick Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how much was received in VAT on participation fees for games of bingo in each year since its introduction;
	(2)  what assessment has he made of the impact on bingo clubs of  (a) the imposition of VAT on participation fees,  (b) the changes introduced in the 2007 Gaming Act and  (c) the ban on smoking in public places.

John Healey: Total VAT receipts are published in the Financial Statement and Budget Report 2007. It is not possible to give the breakdown requested, or to assess the specific impact of the Budget changes on bingo clubs. However, the forecast total yield from the Budget changes to Gaming Duty was published in the Financial Statement and Budget Report.
	The effect of the smoking ban was incorporated into the forecast of total gambling receipts, which includes bingo duty receipts, and was published in the Financial Statement and Budget Report.

Welfare Tax Credits: Overpayments

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer to question 128930 on 16 April 2007,  Official Report, column 421W, if he will publish figures showing the number of notices of warning of legal proceedings if payment is not made which were sent to individuals claiming tax credits who were in dispute with HM Revenue and Customs in each month from April 2003 to March 2007.

Stephen Timms: It is HMRC's policy to suspend the recovery of overpayments while a dispute is being considered, and therefore should not issue notices of warning of legal proceedings while this is taking place.

Working Tax Credit

David Gauke: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many claims for working tax credits for households without children there were in the most recent period for which figures are available; and what the total expenditure on those claims was in that period.

John Healey: Estimates of the number of families without children claiming working tax credits in 2004-05, including information on total expenditure on these claims, is available on the HMRC website at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-annual-0405.pdf
	Figures for 2005-06 are due to be published on 22 May.

Youth for Europe

John Hayes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which Youth for Europe projects have been financed by the EU in the UK in the last 12 months.

Bill Rammell: I have been asked to reply.
	The Youth for Europe projects within the UK receiving EU funding in the last 12 months are shown in alphabetic order in the following list.
	6VT Youth Cafe
	98th Merchiston Scout Group
	Aberdeen YMCA
	ACE Motivational Courses
	Acting Up Drama Group
	Acton Vale Somali Community
	Albert and Friends Instant Circus
	Alhijra Somali Community Assoc
	Antrim Youth Council
	Ashford YMCA
	Ballymena Youth Council
	Bathgate PHAB Club
	BID Services with Deaf People
	Birches Community Association
	Birmingham Youth Service
	Boys' and Girls' Clubs of Wales
	Bradford Youth Service
	Brownlow Resource Centre
	Burwell Church Youth Group
	CAFK
	Calling the Shots Films Ltd, Peasedown
	Cardiff Young Peoples Forum
	Cardiff Youth Service
	Castle Hill Reformed Church
	Centre 65, Chipping Campden
	Challenge and Adventure
	Chethams School of Music, Friday Club, Upton
	Christ Church Youth Group
	Colchester YMCA Foyer—Young Deaf Club
	Community Youth Group, Penarth
	Connexions West Yorkshire
	Crossley House, Manchester
	CVS, Preston
	Cymdeithas Tai Hafan
	Dacorum Borough Council
	Dales United Youth FC
	Department of Defence Dependents' Schools
	Devon Federation of YFCs
	Devon Youth Service: South Hams
	Dialogue Youth
	Docklands Outreach
	Doncaster Youth Jazz Assoc
	Down Youth Office
	East Sussex County Council
	Edinburgh Rudolf Steiner School
	EISA London
	Emerging Artistic Talent Southampton Ltd
	Everything's Possible
	Foyle Youth Bank
	Gallowgate and Calton Children's Project Possibilities
	Gladiator Explorer Scouts
	Glasgow City Council
	Grampus Heritage and Training
	Grey Lodge Settlement
	Hampshire County Youth Service
	Hanley Castle High School St. Basils
	Hartlepool Youth Service
	Helensburgh District Explorer Scouts
	Hendon Young Peoples Project,
	Hinckley Youth Council
	Hostelling International NI (Valve Project)
	International Relations, Durham
	Inverclyde Volunteering for Youths
	Isaac Newton Arts Trust
	Junction Swanley
	Kent Community Housing Trust
	Kent Youth & Community
	Kettlethorpe Youth Centre. Wakefield
	Leicester Stars FC
	Lewisham Young Mayor's Advisory Group
	Linlithgow Twinning Exchange
	Mersea Outdoors
	Middlesbrough Youth Service
	Mourne Presbyterian Youth Fellowship
	Muirhouse Youth Development Group
	Neath Port Talbot Youth Service
	Norfolk International Projects
	North Ely Youth and Community Centre
	North Lanarkshire Youth Council
	Oldham Theatre Workshop
	Patrician Youth Centre
	Peterlee Youth Centre
	Powys CC Youth Services
	Purley Crusaders
	Rathcoole/Sunlea Area Youth Project
	REACH Across
	Revelation Youth Group
	Royal Borough Kensington and Chelsea
	Rural Futures
	Rushmoor Borough Council
	Saffron Walden High School
	Scottish Deaf Association
	Sevenoaks and Tunbridge Wells Team
	South Cheltenham Detached Youth Work Team
	South Shropshire Youth Forum
	Spelthorne Youth Council
	Spirit of Enniskillen Trust
	St. Oswalds West End Centre
	St. Teresa's Youth Centre
	Staffordshire Youth Service
	Streetsoul
	Sutton Coldfield YMCA
	Taghnevan Youth Club
	Teesside Colleges, Stockton
	Thamesmead Youth Centre
	The Astor Youth Group
	The Box Youth Project,
	The Henry Box School
	The Lift MYA, Liverpool
	The Sweatbox
	Theatr Fforwm Cymru
	Torbay Youth Service
	Trafford Youth Service, Manchester
	UNA, Cardiff
	Wakefield Young People's Service
	Wales Youth Action
	Wellhouse Community Trust, Hazelwood
	West Bowling People's Project
	West Dunbartonshire Council
	West Lothian/Hochsauerlandkeis Exchange
	WIDEA
	Young Farmers Clubs of Ulster
	Young Xplorers, Newcastle
	Youth Centre
	Youth Learning Service

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Business Link

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much funding was given to Business Link in each of the last three years.

Margaret Hodge: I have been asked to reply.
	In each of the last three years, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) have provided the following levels of funding for the Business Link service:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2004-05 140 
			 2005-06 140 
			 2006-07 140 
			  Source: The Small Business Service Agency Annual Accounts and Reports 
		
	
	The budgets from the DTI are made available through the "single pot" of money allocated to Regional Development Agencies.

Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the 2007-08 Budget is for the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service; and what the budget was in each of the last five years.

Parmjit Dhanda: I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave her on 19 April 2007,  Official Report, column 719W. The information requested in respect of 2003-04 and 2002-03 is in the table.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2003-04 95,000,000 (on a resource basis, plus 2,500,000 provision for transition to resource accounting)(1) 
			 2002-03 84,500,000 (on a cash basis)(1) 
			 (1) Includes the budget for CAFCASS Cymru

Children in Care

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children are in local authority care in England, broken down by ethnic background.

Parmjit Dhanda: holding answer 23 April 2007
	The number of children who are in local authority care in England broken down by ethnic background at 31 March 2006 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Children looked after at 3 1  M arch 2006 by ethnicity( 1,)( )( 2) , England 
			  Ethnic origin  All children looked after at 31 March 2006  (Number) 
			  All children( 1,)( )( 2) 60,300 
			   
			  White 47,200 
			 White British 45,100 
			 White Irish 450 
			 Any other White background 1,600 
			   
			  Mixed 5,000 
			 White and Black Caribbean 1,900 
			 White and Black African 420 
			 White and Asian 730 
			 Any other mixed background 2,000 
			   
			  Asian or Asian British 2,000 
			 Indian 300 
			 Pakistani 610 
			 Bangladeshi 270 
			 Any other Asian background 870 
			   
			  Black or Black British 4,900 
			 Caribbean 1,600 
			 African 2,400 
			 Any other Black background 920 
			   
			  Other ethnic groups 1,200 
			 Chinese 120 
			 Any other ethnic group 1,100 
			 (1) Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short term placements. (2) To preserve the confidentiality of each individual child, figures at national level have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 and to the nearest 10 otherwise.  Source: SSDA903 return

Children in Care: Missing Persons

Helen Southworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many looked after children who went missing from care were victims of a crime against the person while missing in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many children who went missing from care in each of the last five years subsequently disclosed abuse as the reason for running away.

Parmjit Dhanda: Information on:
	(1) the number of looked after children who went missing from care in each of the last five years who were victims of a crime against the person while missing; and
	(2) the number of looked after children who went missing from care in each of the last five years who subsequently disclosed abuse as the reason for running away is not collected by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES).

City Academies

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the total construction cost was of each completed academy.

Jim Knight: There are 26 academies open where construction work has been completed. The cost of each is detailed in the following table. These figures presented are as at March 2007 and are subject to change as final accounts have yet to be agreed.
	
		
			   Academy  Cost  ( £ million  rounded to nearest half million) 
			 1 Bexley Business Academy(1) 38.5 
			 2 Walsall City Academy 17.5 
			 3 Greig City Academy, Haringey 16.5 
			 4 Capital City Academy, Brent 27.0 
			 5 Lambeth Academy 25.5 
			 6 King's Academy, Middlesbrough 22.5 
			 7 Unity City Academy, Middlesbrough 22.0 
			 8 The West London Academy, Baling 31.0 
			 9 Stockley Academy, Hillingdon 28.0 
			 10 Djanogly City Academy, Nottingham 23.5 
			 11 The Academy at Peckham, Southwalk 30.0 
			 12 Bristol City Academy 27.5 
			 13 Manchester Academy 20.0 
			 14 Mossbourne Community Academy, Hackney 28.5 
			 15 The Academy of St Francis of Assisi, Liverpool 21.0 
			 16 Northampton Academy 27.5 
			 17 City of London Academy, Southwark 33.5 
			 18 Trinity Academy, Doncaster 25.0 
			 19 Marlowe Academy, Kent 28.0 
			 20 London Academy, Barnet 31.5 
			 21 Sandwell Academy 27.0 
			 22 Grace Academy, Solihull 31.5 
			 23 Salford City Academy 16.5 
			 24 David Young Community Academy, Leeds 23.5 
			 25 Dixons City Academy, Bradford(2) 6.5 
			 26 Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham Academy, Lewisham(2) 7.0 
			 (1) The Business Academy, Bexley is an "all through" academy catering for pupils from age three to 19. This cost includes the cost of both the primary school and secondary school. (2) Dixons and Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham are both conversions from city technology colleges.

City Academies

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many and what proportion of governors on the governing body of each academy are local authority governors.

Jim Knight: The composition of each academy governing body is described in its memorandum and articles. However, as the academy trust is able to co-opt additional members, the precise composition of each governing body at any point in time is not known by the Department, and we are unable to say how many local authority governors there are, or what proportion they represent of academy governing bodies.
	While the size and precise composition of an academy governing body is not prescribed by the Department, like other state-funded schools, academies have stakeholder governors. Departmental policy is that each academy should have a local authority appointed governor and a parent governor. Academy governing bodies may also include the Academy principal (as an ex-officio member), a teacher governor (either elected or appointed); a staff governor (either elected or appointed), and may include community representatives.

Classroom Assistants: Pay and Manpower

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how much was paid in salaries to  (a) learning support assistants and  (b) teaching assistants in (i) pupil referral units, (ii) special needs units attached to mainstream schools, (iii) resourced provision, units and special classes in maintained mainstream schools and (iv) maintained special schools in each year between 1997 and 2007;
	(2)  how many teaching assistants were employed in  (a) pupil referral units,  (b) special needs units attached to mainstream schools,  (c) resourced provision, units and special classes in maintained mainstream schools and  (d) maintained special schools in each year between 1997 and 2007;
	(3)  how many learning support assistants there were in  (a) pupil referral units,  (b) special needs units attached to mainstream schools,  (c) resourced provision, units and special classes in maintained mainstream schools and  (d) maintained special schools in each of the years between 1997 and 2007.

Jim Knight: Information on the salaries paid to learning support assistants, teaching assistants and other school support staff is not collected centrally.
	"The Deployment and Impact of Support Staff in Schools" is an ongoing research project commissioned by the Department. It started in 2004 and will run to 2009. One strand of the project is a survey conducted in 2004 with a sample of support staff. The sample was not representative but the results were weighted to account for any bias in the sample. Amongst other things, the questionnaire asked about their pay. Support staff in special schools reported a mean hourly wage of £9.06. This compared with £7.90 and £9.55 for support staff in primary and secondary schools respectively. Teaching assistant equivalent staff across the maintained sector reported a mean hourly wage of £8.66. "Teaching Assistant Equivalent" includes teaching assistants, learning support assistants for SEN pupils, nursery nurses and therapists. The full wave one report can be found at: http://www.dfes.gov.uk/research/data/uploadfiles/RR776.pdf and the next interim report is due during summer 2007.
	Information on learning support assistants is collected within the overall number of teaching assistants but is not available as a separate category. Numbers of special needs support staff are however available separately. In addition numbers cannot be provided separately for units and classes within mainstream schools.
	The following table provides the number of full-time equivalent teaching assistants employed in pupil referral units, maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools and maintained special schools in England from January 1997 to 2006 and is the latest information available. The number of those who are special needs support staff are also provided.
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent teaching assistants( 1)  employed in pupil referral units( 1) , maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools and maintained special schools in England, January 1997 to 2006 
			  Thousand 
			   Pupil referral units  Maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools  Maintained special schools 
			   Teaching assistants  Of which: Special needs support staff( 1)  Teaching assistants  Of which: Special needs support staff  Teaching assistants  Of which: Special needs support staff( 1) 
			 1997 — 260 49,690 24,250 10,620 — 
			 1998 — 370 53,800 25,680 11,370 — 
			 1999 — 430 57,240 29,110 11,930 — 
			 2000 — 540 65,830 31,890 12,650 — 
			 2001 — 620 80,970 37,040 13,400 — 
			 2002(2) 890 310 91,310 39,310 13,160 7,000 
			 2003 1,330 490 104,540 39,930 15,320 5,880 
			 2004 1,830 490 114,500 40,620 15,730 5,300 
			 2005 2,070 530 127,880 41,020 17,050 6,440 
			 2006 1,970 430 132,530 40,980 18,610 6,130 
			 (1 )Whilst the overall collection of support staff data for schools was successful, it is possible that some discontinuity in the time series data has resulted from underlying change in data collection. (2) When PLASC was introduced in 2002 data collection forms were standardised throughout all sectors.  Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: Annual School Census

Community Champions Fund

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which organisations have received funding from the Community Champions Fund since its inception; what plans he has for the future budget of the Community Champions Fund in forthcoming financial years; and if he will make a statement.

Parmjit Dhanda: Community Champions funding supports individuals rather than organisations. Individuals can apply for up to £2,000 to run innovative projects in their community. The total number of awards in 2005-06 was 1,769; the average award was £1,250. Funding is currently available until the end of March 2008.
	The purpose of the comprehensive spending review settlement for this Department is to deliver key priorities for children, young people and learners over the period 2008-11. Decisions to be taken over the coming months will permit more detailed announcements to be made in due course about the allocation of resources, but it is unlikely that extension of the Community Champions Fund will be given priority over programmes that more directly impact on outcomes for children and young people.

Child Care: North East Region

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people in  (a) the North East and  (b) Middlesbrough, South and East Cleveland are eligible for financial support for child care.

Beverley Hughes: All three and four-year-olds can benefit from 12.5 hours a week free early years provision, irrespective of the employment status of their parents. This will rise to 15 hours a week by 2010.
	The Office for National Statistics shows the North East region having a population of 52,100(1) three and four-year-olds, and the 2006 Early Years and Schools Censuses show the number of part time early education places funded by the free entitlement for three and four-year-olds in the North East region as 50,900(2). The number of part time early education places funded by the free entitlement for three and four year olds in Middlesbrough, South and East Cleveland parliamentary constituency
	area was 1,900(1).
	A pilot scheme for disadvantaged two-year-olds offering 7.5 hours per week free early years provision is also available in Middlesbrough, Sunderland, Durham and South Tyneside until March 2008. This will benefit a total of 1,200 children in the North East.
	The child care element of working tax credit (WTC) is available for meeting up to 80 per cent. of the cost of registered or approved childcare to a maximum cost of £175 a week for one child and £300 a week for two children or more. The average number of families in each constituency benefiting from the child care element of working tax credit in 2004-05 is available in the HMRC statistical publication "Child and Working Tax Credit Statistics. Finalised Awards 2004-05. Geographical analyses", which is available on the HMRC website at: www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm. Estimates for 2005-06 are due to be published in May.
	In addition to the child care element of working tax credits, child care used by parents can be subsidised in a variety of ways including local authority subsidies, Jobcentre Plus new deals, care to learn, learner support funds and NHS child care allowances. Wider data on eligibility for financial support for child care are not however available centrally.
	(1) As at December 2005. ONS population estimates are aggregated to age groupings of at least five years. Figures based on a single year of age at the sub-national level are therefore of limited reliability.
	(2) The number of children benefiting from some form of free early education can exceed the number of free part-time early education places taken up by children as a place may be taken up by more than one child.

Departments: Official Hospitality

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much was spent on hospitality by his Department in the financial year 2006-07.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Department's rules on hospitality adhere to the principles set out in Government Accounting and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety. Approval must be sought in advance from the appropriate director or Board member for all hospitality expenses. The Department's provisional outturn for such expenditure in 2006-07 was £4,372.

Diplomas for England

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which schools in the London borough of Havering have been selected as pilot schools for the introduction of the new diplomas for England.

Jim Knight: On 28 March I announced the first 145 consortia (groups of schools, colleges and training providers) across 97 local authorities that have been given approval to offer one or more of the first five 14 to 19 diplomas from September 2008. We have always been clear that the bar was set high so that although there were a lot of assessments submitted with good elements, only those consortia who demonstrated they were able to provide high quality delivery across all the criteria from September 2008 were included in the first group. Consortia from the London borough of Havering were not approved for delivery from September 2008, but we have provided a support package to help them prepare for a future gateway.

Educational Psychology

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the role of educational psychologists in the Every Child Matters scheme;
	(2)  how many educational psychologists qualified in each year since 1997;
	(3)  what the reasons were for reductions in funding for educational psychologists' training; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  what steps he is taking to ensure that enough educational psychologists are being trained to meet demand;
	(5)  what progress has been made in retrieving funding provided to local councils that was allocated to the training of educational psychologists; and if he will make a statement.

Parmjit Dhanda: Educational psychologists (EPs) play an important role in assessing special educational needs and in helping to formulate support arrangements for children with a wide range of needs, including those with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties. The value of their contribution was confirmed by a recent independent study, conducted by the School of Education, University of Manchester, published by the DfES on 31 August 2006. A copy of the report, "A Review of the Functions and Contribution of Educational Psychologists in England and Wales in light of "Every Child Matters: Changes for Children", Research Report No 792", was placed in the House of Commons Library, and can also be accessed via the Department's research website:
	www.dfes.gov.uk/research
	Information on the number of those who qualify annually as EPs is not collected centrally.
	With regard to EP entry training arrangements, and associated funding, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 25 April 2007,  Official Report, columns 1181-82W.

Educational Psychology

Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many educational psychologists qualified in each of the last 10 years for which data are available; and how many he expects to qualify in  (a) 2007 and  (b) 2008;
	(2)  how many training places for educational psychologists were funded in each year between 2000 and 2006; how many he expects to be funded in 2007; and if he will make a statement on the level and allocation of funding by the Local Government Association.

Parmjit Dhanda: holding answer 30 April 2007
	 Information on the number of those who qualify as educational psychologists, and the number of funded EP training places, is not collected centrally.
	With regard to funding arrangements for the training of EPs, I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 25 April 2007,  Official Report, columns 1181-82W.

EU-Canada Joint Committee on Higher Education Training and Youth

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will place in the Library a copy of the agenda of the last meeting of the EU-Canada Joint Committee on Higher Education, Training and Youth.

Bill Rammell: The agendas of meetings of the EU-Canada Joint Committee on Higher Education, Training and Youth are internal documents of the European Commission and are not held by my Department. An application can be made with the European Commission to release the requested document.

Further Education: Finance

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what funding was available for further education colleges to support  (a) NVQ Level 2,  (b) NVQ Level 3 and  (c) NVQ Level 4 in upholstery and soft furnishing in each year between 1996 and 2006;
	(2)  what funding was provided to further education colleges to enable students to undertake qualifications in upholstery and soft furnishing in each year between 1996 and 2006; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: We have increased public investment in further education by 48 per cent. in real terms between 1997-98 and 2005-06. Adult education funding will increase by 7 per cent. between 2005-06 and 2007-08, with funding for young people increasing by 13 per cent. over the same period. This means that overall in 2007-08, through the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) we will invest £11.2 billion, an increase of £716 million compared with 2006-07.
	Information on course subjects that learners are undertaking is only available from the LSC at the broad sector level. This does not allow for discrete subjects such as upholstery and soft furnishings to be identified, therefore it is not possible to provide details on the level of funding for these courses.

Further Education: Finance

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the availability of traditional upholstery skills courses in further education colleges in each year between 1996 and 2006.

Bill Rammell: Colleges have benefited from our 48 per cent. real terms increase in further education funding between 1997-98 and 2005-06. We have realigned funding to support our priorities and as announced on 15 March we have met our interim adult Level 2 target with a million more adults in the workforce with essential employability skills. Also more than 1.6 million learners have achieved Skills for Life qualifications in literacy, language and numeracy.
	The structure and delivery of courses is the responsibility of the individual providers which means that we do not hold information on this centrally. It is therefore not possible to report on the number of traditional upholstery skills courses delivered by colleges in any given year.

Further Education: Standards

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many notices to improve were issued to further education colleges in each of the last three years; how many of these have been made public; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: Nine Notices to Improve (Notices) have been issued to further education colleges in the last three years. Four were as a result of an Ofsted inspection judgement of overall inadequate. The remaining five were issued as a result of the colleges failing to meet the minimum levels of performance.
	Notices were introduced in 2006 following the commitment to eliminate failure set out in the White Paper, Further Education: Raising Skills, Improving Life Chances. Notices are a process for setting additional conditions of funding to address underperformance within a specified time frame.
	The LSC have not made any notices public and do not intend to do so.

A Level: Standards

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students entering English universities for the first time in 2006 did not have two grade E A levels or better A level qualifications.

Bill Rammell: In 2005/06, there were 2,620 entrants (2 per cent.) with one or more A levels who had fewer than 80 tariff points from these qualifications. The figures relate to 18-year-old English domiciled entrants to full time first degree courses at English higher education institutions who have obtained one or more A levels. A grade E at A level is worth 40 tariff points.
	Tariff points are not to be the only factor universities consider in assessing potential to succeed in HE. In 2004, Professor Steven Schwartz conducted an independent review of admissions to HE. The report makes clear that while prior educational attainment data (e.g. 'A' levels) remain the best indicator of success at undergraduate level, equal exams results may not represent equal potential to succeed in HE, and that universities can usefully consider other factors. The Schwartz Group recommended an 'holistic assessment' of applicants which included consideration of contextual factors, given the variation of learners' opportunities and circumstances.

Graduates: Qualifications

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many and what proportion of university graduates qualified in  (a) physics,  (b) engineering and  (c) mathematics in each of the last 15 years.

Bill Rammell: The latest figures are shown in the tables. Data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency are only available from 1994/95 onwards; figures for the previous years are taken from published sources which do not separately identify Physics and Mathematics.
	
		
			  Number and proportion of students obtaining first degree qualifications by subject area ,  UK higher and further education institutions , y ears( 1 ) 1991 to 1993 
			   Subject 
			   Physical Sciences( 2)  Engineering and Technology  Mathematical and Computing Sciences( 3)  All Subjects 
			  Number 
			 1991 9,400 17,400 8,700 161,500 
			 1992 10,200 18,800 9,800 178,700 
			 1993 10,800 19,400 10,900 189,200 
			  
			  Proportion ( P ercentage) 
			 1991 6 11 5 100 
			 1992 6 11 5 100 
			 1993 6 10 6 100 
			 (1) Figures are given on a calendar year basis and not an academic year; therefore they are not comparable to the figures in the table. (2) Including Physics. (3) Including Mathematics.  Notes:  The figures are compiled from data collected by the Universities Statistical Record (USR), covering students at former—UFC funded universities, and the education departments of the four home countries, covering students at non-university HE and FE institutions.  Source:  Education Statistics for the United Kingdom 1993,1994 and 1995 editions. 
		
	
	
		
			  Number of students obtaining first degree qualifications by subject area( 1) ,  UK  h igher  e ducation  i nstitutions , a cademic years 1994/95 to 2005/06 
			   Subject 
			  Academic year  Physical Sciences  Of which: Physics  Engineering and Technology  Mathematical Sciences  Of which: Mathematics  All Subjects 
			  Number   
			 1994/95 13,440 2,480 22,085 4,070 3,435 237,795 
			 1995/96 13,785 2,000 23,320 4,070 3,385 251,250 
			 1996/97 14,070 2,440 23,015 3,705 3,115 255,260 
			 1997/98 13,295 2,320 22,575 3,940 3,370 258,755 
			 1998/99 13,055 2,320 22,010 4,250 3,640 263,670 
			 1999/2000 13,185 2,300 20,550 4,095 3,545 265,265 
			 2000/01 (2) 13,205 2,450 20,490 4,295 3,720 272,665 
			 2001/02 12,415 2,210 20,285 4,125 3,725 274,440 
			 2002/03 12,475 2,205 19,455 5,100 4,390 282,380 
			 2003/04 11,995 2,180 19,780 5,395 4,655 292,090 
			 2004/05 12,530 2,235 19,575 5,270 4,575 306,365 
			 2005/06 12,900 2,365 19,765 5,500 4,815 315,985 
			
			  Proportions ( P ercentage)   
			 1994/95 6 1 9 2 1 100 
			 1995/96 5 1 9 2 1 100 
			 1996/97 6 1 9 1 1 100 
			 1997/98 5 1 9 2 1 100 
			 1998/99 5 1 8 2 1 100 
			 1999/2000 5 1 8 2 1 100 
			 2000/01 (2) 5 1 8 2 1 100 
			 2001/02 5 1 7 2 1 100 
			 2002/03 4 1 7 2 2 100 
			 2003/04 4 1 7 2 2 100 
			 2004/05 4 1 6 2 1 100 
			 2005/06 4 1 6 2 2 100 
			 (1) In 2002/03 the coding frame and the method of recording subject of study was changed. The Joint Academic Classification Scheme (JACS) was introduced which although similar to the previous coding frame, is not directly comparable. Additionally, figures are on a full person equivalent basis whereby a student is apportioned between each of their subjects of study. (2) From 2000/01 students qualifying from a dormant mode of study are included in the figures; they are excluded in all previous years. Incoming exchange students are excluded from the figures from 2000/01 onwards; they were included in all previous years.  Source:  Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) student record 
		
	
	The latest figures from UCAS for students applying to enter full-time undergraduate courses in 2007 show that applications for these subjects have risen significantly: Physics is up by 12 per cent., Mathematics by 10 per cent. and most of the engineering subjects are also up including chemical engineering (by 16 per cent.), Civil engineering (by 13 per cent.) and Mechanical engineering (by 8 per cent.).

Higher Education: Scholarships

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many and what percentage of UK higher education institutions spent their full budgeted levels on income-assessed non-repayable bursaries for undergraduate students in each year since 1996;
	(2)  what estimates have been made of the total value of unclaimed non-repayable bursaries and scholarships for students at higher education institutions in each year since 2001.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 16 April 2007
	The Department does not have these figures. Prior to 2006/07 bursaries were solely a matter for individual HE institutions and information was not collected centrally.
	However, we are aware that following the introduction of access agreements in 2006, Higher Education Institutions have budgeted to spend in excess of £300 million on bursaries and scholarships benefiting students from low-income backgrounds and other underrepresented groups by 2010/11. The Office for Fair Access (OFFA) is responsible for the annual monitoring of access agreements from academic year 2006/07 and will report on the outcome in autumn/winter 2007.
	As I said in the Higher Education debate on 15 March 2007,  Official Report, column 483, I am aware that some concerns have been raised about a potential underspend on bursaries in some universities. I am monitoring that situation very closely and encourage any universities forecasting a genuine underspend on bursaries to invest in other measures to improve social inclusion. However, I am also aware that the scale of the underspend has been exaggerated in some reports.

Higher and Further Education: Student Numbers

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many young people were in  (a) higher education and  (b) further education in each of the last 20 years.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 23 April 2007
	 The latest available information on young students is given in the tables.
	 (a) Higher  e ducation
	
		
			  Number of young( 1)  UK domiciled students enrolled on higher education courses at higher and further education institutions( 2)  in Great Britain academic years 1986/87 to 2005/06 
			  Academic year  Higher education 
			 1986/87 359,450 
			 1987/88 364,200 
			 1988/89 368,485 
			 1989/90 388,930 
			 1990/91 414,565 
			 1991/92 454,245 
			 1992/93 489,260 
			 1993/94 516,745 
			 1994/95 532,335 
			 1995/96 537,295 
			 1996/97 550,030 
			 1997/98 576,175 
			 1998/99 601,275 
			 1999/2000 617,925 
			 2000/01 622,395 
			 2001/02 627,600 
			 2002/03 635,885 
			 2003/04 646,460 
			 2004/05 (3) 655,155 
			 2005/06 (3) 678,350 
			 (1) Young refers to students under the age of 21. (2) Includes the Open University. (3) Includes provisional estimates for HE students in further education colleges using 2003/04 data.  Note: Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 5.  Source: Universities Statistical Record (USR), the Open University, and the Education Departments of England, Scotland and Wales for the years up to 1993/94; Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), Learning and Skills Council, Scottish Executive, and Welsh Assembly for 1994/95 and later years. 
		
	
	 (b) Further Education
	
		
			  Number of young( 1 ) people enrolled on LSC-funded( 2)  FE provision academic years 1994/95( 3)  to 2005/06 
			  Academic year  Further education 
			 1994/95 625,600 
			 1995/96 631,200 
			 1996/97 676,300 
			 1997/98 672,000 
			 1998/99 645,800 
			 1999/2000 634,100 
			 2000/01 625,000 
			 2001/02 647,100 
			 2002/03 687,100 
			 2003/04 699,200 
			 2004/05 727,100 
			 2005/06 744,000 
			 (1) Young refers to students under the age of 19. (2) Prior to 2001 further education provision was funded by the Further Education Funding Council (FEFC) (3) The Further and Higher Education Act 1992 had the effect of incorporating FE colleges and Sixth Form colleges formerly maintained by LAs making them eligible to receive funds from the FEFC. As a result, data collections changed, and data on enrolments in FE are not available on a comparable basis prior to 1994/95.  Source:  1994/95 to 1995/96—FEFC: Student Statistics ISR/SFR22; 1996/97 to 2005/06—LSC Statistical First Release: ILR/SFR11 Further Education, Work Based Learning and Adult and Community Learning—Learner Numbers in England 2005/06.

Higher Education: Student Wastage

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students started an undergraduate degree course which they then failed to complete in each year since 1997.

Bill Rammell: The latest available figures are shown in the table.
	
		
			  Proportion of UK-domiciled entrants to full-time first degree courses at higher education institutions in England, who are projected to neither obtain an award nor transfer to another course. 
			   Proportion to neither obtain award nor transfer 
			 1997-98 15.8 
			 1998-99 15.8 
			 1999-2000 15.9 
			 2000-01 15.0 
			 2001-02 13.8 
			 2002-03 13.9 
			 2003-04 14.4 
			  Source: "Performance Indicators in Higher Education" published by HESA. 
		
	
	The figure for 2004-05 will become available by the end of July 2007.
	According to figures published by the OECD, the overall completion rate in UK universities and colleges of higher education is amongst the highest in the OECD countries.

Higher Education: Student Wastage

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the drop-out rate from degree level courses was in 2006.

Bill Rammell: Drop-out rates from degree level courses are given in table T5 of the performance Indicators in Higher Education, published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). In 2003/04, the proportion of UK-domiciled entrants to full-time first degree courses at higher education institutions in England, who were projected to neither obtain an award nor transfer to another course, was 14.4 per cent., compared to a figure of 15.0 per cent. in 2000/01.
	The 2003/04 figure is the latest available: the 2004/05 figure will become available in July 2007.
	According to figures published by the OECD, the overall completion rate in UK universities and colleges of higher education is among the highest in the OECD countries.

Home Start: Cotswolds

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what funding is available for Home-Start in the Cotswolds; and if he will make a statement.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Department does not directly fund Home-Start in the Cotswolds. The DfES has supported the national body, Home-Start UK since 2001 and is providing a strategic grant of £2.73 million in the current 2007-08 financial year. The grant to Home-Start UK is specifically to support capacity building activities of Home-Start UK services in England including national and regional staffing, training, and dissemination of resources to support the coverage of local scheme home visiting services.

Jean Monnet Programme

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the budget is of the European Union's Jean Monnet programme for 2007-08.

Bill Rammell: The European Union uses the calendar year for its financial calculations. For 2007, the European Commission's ex ante (forecast) budget for the Jean Monnet programme is €4,411,044.

Pupils: Age

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the rules regarding school starting age for children;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to ensure that parents are informed that it is not compulsory for a child to attend school until the term after his or her fifth birthday.

Jim Knight: Children become of compulsory school age at the start of the school term after they reach the age of five. Admission authorities may allow children to start school before they reach compulsory school age but, if they do so, parents offered a place at the school may ask that the date that their child is admitted be deferred until later in the school year or until he or she reaches compulsory school age in that school year. Where parents choose this option the place offered to them must be kept open and cannot be offered to another child. The school admissions code requires that this be made clear in published admission arrangements
	Local authorities have a duty to provide advice and assistance to all parents in their area when they are choosing schools for their children and are required to publish a composite prospectus for parents each year with information about all the admission arrangements of all schools in their area. This includes admission to reception classes and the right parents have to request that admission be deferred.

School Milk

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many litres of milk were provided by the free school milk scheme per eligible pupil in England over the last 12 months.

Parmjit Dhanda: This Department does not collect data on school milk provision in schools.
	Local authorities (LAs) are not obliged to provide milk, but where they do so they must provide it free of charge to pupils entitled to receive a free school lunch.
	LAs are free to make use of the EU school milk subsidy scheme (the subsidy), which reduces the cost of milk purchased in nursery and primary schools. Use of the subsidy makes milk more affordable to those parents who purchase school milk and reduces the cost to LAs of free milk provision.

Special Needs Education

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what recent assessment he has made of special needs education in mainstream schools in England.

Parmjit Dhanda: In October 2006 the Government published their response to the report from the Education and Skills Committee on special educational needs (SEN). The response referred to Ofsted's report "Inclusion: does it matter where pupils are taught?" (July 2006) which showed significant improvements in SEN provision since publication of Ofsted's 2004 survey "Special Educational Needs and Disability: towards inclusive schools?"
	Ofsted's 2006 report found that there was little difference in the quality of provision and outcomes for pupils across primary, secondary and special schools. It added, however, that mainstream schools with additionally resourced provision were particularly successful in achieving high outcomes for pupils academically, socially and personally. High quality, specialist teachers and a commitment by leaders to create opportunities to include all pupils were the keys to success but the report noted that pupils in mainstream schools where support from teaching assistants was the main type of provision were less likely to make good academic progress than those who had access to specialist teaching.
	The Government's response to the Select Committee noted that Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools had been asked to review progress on SEN provision in 2009/10. Her review will include reporting on the progress made under the Government's SEN strategy, "Removing Barriers to Achievement", in building teachers' skills in providing for children with SEN.

Special Educational Needs: Autism

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what statutory provisions are in place to ensure that children with autistic spectrum disorder have access to a teacher with a formal qualification in teaching children with autistic spectrum disorder;
	(2)  how many teachers in  (a) mainstream maintained schools,  (b) maintained special schools and  (c) non-maintained special schools have a formal qualification in teaching children with autistic spectrum disorder;
	(3)  what funding the Government provided to assist teachers in gaining higher qualifications to teach children with autistic spectrum disorder in each year from 1997 to 2006.

Parmjit Dhanda: There is no statutory requirement for children with autistic spectrum disorders (ASDs) to have access to a teacher with a formal qualification in teaching children with ASDs.
	The non-statutory ASDs Good Practice Guidance (DfES/DH, 2002) advised that "all those who plan or provide for children with an ASD should have some knowledge and understanding of autism". The Department does not keep records centrally of how many teachers have a formal qualification in teaching children with ASDs.
	Between 1997-98 and 2003-04 the value of the special educational needs (SEN) grant under the standards fund totalled £364.4 million (this figure includes Government grant and local authority matched funding). Training was one of the main sub-heads under the fund. It was for local authorities to decide how to use the funding. The fund guidance in 1999-2000, 2000-01 and 2002-03 specifically highlighted training in ASDs as one of the areas local authorities may have wished to support.
	Since 2004-05 £81 million for SEN has been included in the baseline for the school development grant, which all maintained schools receive, and this increased by 4 per cent. per year in 2004-05 and 2005-06. The school development grant can be used for in-service training. It is a matter for individual teachers and their schools to determine their own training and development needs, including training in ASDs. Local authorities may retain a proportion of this grant, under certain circumstances, to provide specific training in SEN.
	In 2002-03 £1 million was made available for higher education institutions to bid for projects to increase training and development opportunities for teachers, learning support assistants and school governorsunder the SEN training and development fund. Three grants were awarded for autism-related projects: £100,000 to Sheffield Hallam university (training initiatives aimed at raising the achievement of children with ASDs); £95,150 to the university of Birmingham (development of an ICT-supported module at masters level); and £50,000 to the university of Greenwich (collaborative project between the university and an ASD outreach service).

Student Loans Company

Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills for what reasons the Student Loans Company uses the retail price index as its preferred inflation index.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 27 April 2007
	The Government's policy is to apply an interest rate to student loans which maintains the value of the loan in real terms. Borrowers therefore receive an appreciable interest rate subsidy compared to commercial loans. The retail price index is used as the interest rate because it reflects a range of relevant factors including mortgage interest and council tax.

Student Loans Company

Stephen Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how long transfers of student loan repayments from the Treasury's consolidated account remain with his Department before being transferred to the Student Loans Company.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 20 April 2007
	Student loans repayments are not transferred to the Student Loans Company. They reduce the net assets, representing outstanding loans, on the Department for Education and Skills balance sheet. It is only information about repayments made by individual borrowers that is passed to the company to allow it to issue annual statements. Once that information is received by the company, repayments are attributed to each month of the tax year in which they were made by the borrower and monthly interest is calculated accordingly. This ensures that even if there is a delay in repayment details reaching the company, the borrower does not pay any additional interest.

Student Loans Company

Stephen Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much of the student loan repayment transfers received by his Department from the Treasury's consolidated account in each of the last four quarters was  (a) repayment of the principal component and  (b) interest accrued.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 20 April 2007
	The Student Loans Company updates accounts with repayment details as they are received from HM Revenue and Customs. Repayments are taken from the total balance owed by the borrower. The Student Loans Company does not break down either outstanding amounts or repayments into principal and interest components.

Student Loans Company

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how much interest his Department earned on student loan repayments collected before annual transfer to the accounts in each of the last five years for which records are available;
	(2)  what representations he has received regarding the timing of the transfer of repayments of student loans into accounts; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  if he will change the repayment methods employed by his Department on student loans so that repayments are made monthly.

Bill Rammell: I am aware that there is a petition on the No. 10 website based on the mistaken premise that borrowers overpay interest on their student loans because the Student Loans Company (SLC) only credits repayments annually. I have received correspondence relating to this.
	Although borrowers' accounts are only updated as an annual exercise, the total annual repayment received from each borrower is credited to their account as 12 equal monthly payments, and the interest is calculated on a daily basis on the remaining balance in that month. No borrower pays too much interest as a result of the time lag in updating their account, and nor does the Department gain any additional income.

Student Numbers

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his estimate is of the likely number of  (a) UK and  (b) foreign students studying at universities in England in each of the next five years.

Bill Rammell: Estimates of likely numbers of students have not yet been made for this period. Over the last five years, the number of UK based students at English higher education institutions increased by 200,000 (14 per cent.) to 1.67 million and the number of overseas students at such institutions increased by 80,000 (40 per cent.) to 275,000.
	Against that background, we expect many more students from both the UK and abroad to participate in higher education over the next five years.
	Under the second phase of the Prime Minister's initiative, a target has been set for an extra 70,000 non-EU international higher education students and 30,000 non-EU international further education students to be recruited to UK higher education institutions and further education colleges by 2011.

Universities: Northern Cyprus

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the application by the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus for recognition of its six universities under the Council of Europe's Bologna process; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what representations his Department has made to the Council of Europe in respect of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus's application for recognition of its six universities under the Council of Europe's Bologna process;
	(3)  what representations he has received on the financial implications for the Turkish-Cypriot universities of their continued non-membership of the Bologna process.

Bill Rammell: The Government's assessment, which is generally shared by other countries in the Bologna Process, is that the application in question, along with those being considered from Israel, Kosovo and the Kyrgyz Republic, does not meet the criteria for membership of the Process. This is because those criteria require member countries to have ratified the European Cultural Convention. The final decision on this issue will be taken when Ministers meet at the Bologna Process Ministerial Conference in May. The Bologna Process is not a Council of Europe initiative but an independent intergovernmental agreement. The Government have not therefore made any representations to the Council of Europe on this matter. My officials have received representations from Professor Tahir Celik, chair of the Higher Education Board in the 'Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus', concerning his assessment of the potential economic impact of non-membership on universities in the 'Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus'.

Diplomas

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which diploma consortia have been approved to run diplomas in each subject area in 2008.

Jim Knight: On 28 March I was pleased to announce the first 145 consortia (groups of schools, colleges and training providers) across 97 local authorities that have been given approval to offer one or more of the first five 14 to 19 diplomas from September 2008. A total of around 40,000 places are forecast across the country. Approved consortia delivering the diploma from 2008 were banded into two categories.
	Category 1: recommended to go through for 2008 delivery with no conditions;
	Category 2: recommended to go through for delivery from September 2008 with conditions that will need to be met within three months.

HEALTH

Alcoholic Drinks: Labelling

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to bring forward measures to introduce health warnings on alcoholic drinks.

Caroline Flint: The Department has been working with the alcohol industry for a voluntary agreement on sensible drinking messages and unit information to include on labels.

Alcohol and Drugs: Strategy

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether she made an assessment of the potential for fiscal incentives to contribute to the promotion of responsible drinking prior to the 2007 Budget.

Caroline Flint: Tax decisions are made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, taking account of a range of factors, including health.

Alcohol and Drugs: Strategy

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the timetable is for the review of the  (a) alcohol and  (b) drugs strategy; and what consultation is taking place in relation to each such strategy.

Vernon Coaker: I have been asked to reply.
	The Home Office is leading the cross-Government effort on the development of a new Drug Strategy. The existing, and successful, 10-year strategy runs until March 2008. A consultation document is planned to be issued alongside details of the consultation process in May/June 2007. The intention is to consult interested groups and individuals, including service providers and those affected by drugs—users, families and local communities. Subject to cross-Government agreement, the new strategy is likely to be published in late 2007.
	The Home Office and Department of Health are jointly leading a review of the Alcohol Harm Strategy for England 2004 and the development of a new Alcohol Strategy with support from the Department for Education and Skills. A series of detailed discussions have been held with key stakeholders from the health, police and young people's sectors and the alcohol industry to inform the development of the new Alcohol Strategy. The new strategy is due to be launched in summer 2007. A formal consultation is not planned prior to launch, but consultation is likely to be required on implementation of key aspects of the strategy.

Blood Transfusions

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps have been taken to ensure that blood transfusions are avoided wherever possible.

Caroline Flint: The Department has taken a number of measures to ensure the most appropriate use of blood, and to encourage the national health service to use less blood. Some of the key measures are set out as follows.
	In 1998, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) launched the Better Blood Transfusion initiative to promote and encouraged better/appropriate use of blood and alternatives to transfusion.
	In July 2002, Health Service Circular (HSC) 2002/009 "Better Blood Transfusion—Appropriate Use of Blood" was issued. This has been placed in the Library and is available at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Lettersandcirculars/Healthservicecirculars/DH_4004264
	This circular asked NHS trusts and primary care trusts to review and explore the use of effective alternatives to donor blood, and also using the patients own blood.
	The CMO's National Blood Transfusion Committee was established in 2002 to advise hospitals and the National Blood Service on best practice and performance monitoring, improving the safety and appropriateness of blood transfusion practice, listening to and informing patient concerns and promoting high quality and consistent transfusion practice.
	The Department and the United Kingdom blood services produced a toolkit for practitioners on better blood transfusion, safe practice, appropriate use, education and training, and monitoring and traceability. The toolkit, which is available at www.transfusion guidelines.org.uk/, aims to help NHS trusts to make the most appropriate use of blood and its alternatives where possible.
	A seminar was held on 16 March 2007 to discuss progress and identify ways to maintain or improve the safe and appropriate use of blood over the next three to five years. An HSC will be issued to the NHS on the outcomes.

Blood Transfusions

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps her Department is taking to prevent unnecessary blood transfusions which can be prevented through the use of erythropoietin.

Caroline Flint: The type of treatment offered to patients is a matter of individual clinical judgment and discussion with the patient concerned.
	The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence is currently appraising erythropoietin for the treatment of anaemia induced by cancer treatment and expects to publish final guidance to the national health service in November 2007.

Blood Transfusions

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what alternatives are made available to people who choose not to receive blood transfusions on religious grounds.

Caroline Flint: Patients have the right to refuse a blood transfusion and this will be respected. However, before refusing a blood transfusion, patients need to fully understand the consequences of doing so. Information is available at www.transfusion guidelines.org.uk/ on alternatives to blood transfusion.

Blood: Contamination

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of the number of haemophiliacs who were infected with HIV and hepatitis C through blood transfusions when they were children, but are unable to receive hardship funds through the Macfarlane Trust and the Skipton fund; and if she will make a statement.

Caroline Flint: The Macfarlane Trust was set up in 1988 to provide financial help to patients with haemophilia infected with the HIV virus and their families.
	The Skipton fund was set up in 2004 to administer an Ex-gratia Payment scheme for patients infected with hepatitis C following national health service treatment with blood or blood products. Haemophilia patients who were infected with hepatitis C are eligible for a payment under the Skipton fund.
	Anyone eligible for payments should have received them. The Department is examining two cases where individuals claim that they have not received payments they may be entitled to.

Chlamydia Infection: Screening

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 12 March 2007,  Official Report, column 120W, on chlamydia infection: screening, what percentage of primary care trusts participated in the chlamydia screening programme in the most recent period for which figures are available; and which primary care trusts are not participating in the programme.

Caroline Flint: To the end of December 2006, we had 45 per cent. of primary care trusts reporting data to the Health Protection Agency (HPA). This is an additional 2 per cent. to the 43 per cent. I gave in my reply on 12 March 2007 and covers 35 programme areas. More programme areas have started screening since then. The data for the January to March 2007 quarter will be reported to the HPA at the end of April.
	The primary care trusts that have not reported data to the HPA are given in the following list.
	 PCT name
	South Gloucestershire
	Havering
	Kingston
	Bromley
	Greenwich Teaching
	Barnet
	North East Lincolnshire
	Hillingdon
	Barking and Dagenham
	City and Hackney Teaching
	Tower Hamlets
	Newham
	Blackburn with Darwen
	Herefordshire
	Newcastle
	North Tyneside
	North Lincolnshire
	Bassetlaw
	Plymouth Teaching
	Stockport
	Bath and North East Somerset
	Hammersmith and Fulham
	Rotherham
	Blackpool
	Ealing
	Hounslow
	Calderdale
	Barnsley
	Swindon
	Croydon
	Gateshead
	South Tyneside
	Sunderland Teaching
	Southampton City
	Medway Teaching
	Kensington and Chelsea
	Westminster
	Wandsworth
	Shropshire County
	Walsall Teaching
	Richmond and Twickenham
	Sutton and Merton
	North Somerset
	Telford and Wrekin
	Wolverhampton City
	Kirklees
	Wakefield District
	Doncaster
	Derbyshire County
	Derby City
	Lincolnshire
	Redbridge
	Waltham Forest
	Cumbria
	Halton and St. Helens
	East and North Hertfordshire
	West Hertfordshire
	Surrey
	West Kent
	Leicestershire County and Rutland
	Leicester City
	Northamptonshire
	Dudley
	South Staffordshire
	Worcestershire
	Warwickshire
	Peterborough
	West Essex
	North East Essex
	Mid Essex PCT
	South West Essex PCT
	Buckinghamshire PCT
	Oxfordshire PCT
	Berkshire West PCT
	Gloucestershire PCT
	Bristol PCT
	Wiltshire PCT
	Somerset PCT
	Devon PCT
	Isle of Wight Healthcare PCT
	Northumberland Care Trust
	Bexley Care Trust
	Torbay Care Trust

Cholesterol

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many diagnoses of high cholesterol there were in England in each year since 1997-98; and how many such diagnoses were made in those under the age of 18 years.

Caroline Flint: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  All diagnosis count of finished consultant episodes and patients for high cholesterol—national health service hospitals, England 1997-98 to 2005-06 
			   1997-98  1998-99  1999-2000  2000-01 
			  Age group  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts 
			 Aged under 18 167 121 200 167 244 198 298 209 
			 Aged 18 and above 53,537 39,373 72,748 53,420 94,622 67,977 132,880 91,718 
			 Age not known 226 153 35 32 42 40 257 133 
			 Total 53,930 39,647 72,983 53,619 94,907 68,215 133,436 92,060 
		
	
	
		
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05 
			  Age group  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts 
			 Aged under 18 344 240 336 270 393 318 558 426 
			 Aged 18 and above 162,655 111,682 200,733 134,702 225,665 155,308 288,424 195,375 
			 Age not known 202 200 141 139 87 87 70 70 
			 Total 163,201 112,122 201,211 135,111 226,145 155,713 289,052 195,871 
		
	
	
		
			   2005-06 
			  Age group  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts 
			 Aged under 18 656 507 
			 Aged 18 and above 363,156 241,424 
			 Age not known 58 58 
			 Total 363,870 241,989

CJD

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what plans she has to test blood donors for vCJD;
	(2)  what estimate she has made of the annual cost of testing blood donors for vCJD.

Caroline Flint: There are no current suitable tests for testing blood donation for variant Creutzfeld-Jakob disease (vCJD), and therefore no current plans to test blood donors. However we are aware of a number of companies developing vCJD blood tests and, if such tests become available and after consulting with the appropriate advisory bodies, we will consider their utility in testing blood donations with the National Blood Service.
	There are no reliable current estimates of the cost of testing blood donations for vCJD, which could only be accurately calculated once a suitable test for testing donations is available, and the cost of such a test is known.

Co-Proxamol

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the reasons were for the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency's decision to implement a phased withdrawal of co-proxamol; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  when co-proxamol will be withdrawn from general use in the relief of pain for sufferers of  (a) osteoarthritis and  (b) fibromyalgia; and what alternative drugs will be able to be prescribed.;
	(3)  what  (a) discussions she has had with and  (b) representations she has received from (i) Arthritis Care, (ii) the Arthritis Research Campaign, (iii) the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society and (iv) the Fibromyalgia Association on the phased withdrawal of co-proxamol.

Caroline Flint: There has been growing concern about the safety of co-proxamol, prompted by United Kingdom research showing that co-proxamol alone accounts for almost one-fifth of drug related suicides and is second only to tricyclic antidepressants as an agent of fatal drug overdose. Furthermore, co-proxamol is involved in 300-400 self-poisoning deaths each year.
	Many deaths involve people taking co-proxamol that had not been prescribed to them. Co-proxamol is potentially very toxic, and toxic overdose can occur with only a few tablets more than the recommended daily dose. Unlike paracetamol there is very limited opportunity for effective treatment of co-proxamol poisoning and sadly victims often die before they reach hospital.
	As a result of these concerns, in 2004 the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) conducted a rigorous review of all the available evidence regarding the risks and benefits of co-proxamol. The review highlighted that there is a lack of evidence that co-proxamol is any more effective than full dose paracetamol, either for short term use or for chronic conditions. During the review a public call for evidence on the risks and benefits of co-proxamol was also conducted. The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) wrote to a large number of organisations representing healthcare professionals, patient groups and other stakeholders. The information gathered provided no new objective evidence concerning the risk and benefits of co-proxamol.
	The CSM noted that previously strengthened warnings to doctors and patients on the hazards of co-proxamol had proved ineffective. After considering all the available evidence the CSM determined that the risks of co-proxamol outweigh the benefits of allowing the medicine to remain on the market and advised that co-proxamol should be withdrawn over a period of up to 36 months.
	The marketing authorisations for co-proxamol will be withdrawn at the end of 2007. Some manufacturers have already withdrawn co-proxamol and a few will phase the withdrawal until the end of 2007. This extended withdrawal period allows long-term co-proxamol users an opportunity to move to suitable alternatives. There are a number of such alternatives and the MHRA has issued CSM pain management guidance to help doctors find the best options for individual patients. This is available on the MHRA's website at www.mhra.gov.uk.
	The MHRA recognises that there is a small group of patients who are likely to find it very difficult to change from co-proxamol or for whom there is an identified clinical need, and for whom alternatives appear not to be effective or suitable. For these patients, continued provision of co-proxamol through normal prescribing may continue until the cancellation of the licences at the end of 2007. After this time there will be provision for the supply of unlicensed co-proxamol, on the responsibility of the prescriber.
	The MHRA has met with Arthritis Care, the British Society for Rheumatology, the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society and the British Pain Society to discuss the withdrawal of co-proxamol. As a result of these discussions, an article on the risk and benefit of co-proxamol was agreed for publication in the MHRA's/CSM's drug safety bulletin, 'Current Problems in Pharmacovigilance'. Arthritis Care, the British Pain Society and the British Society for Rheumatology also responded to the public call for evidence. As is usual for MHRA public consultations, the responses to consultation are available on request.
	The outcome of regulatory action to withdraw co-proxamol is being carefully monitored. It is encouraging to see that the latest figures on suicide show that the national suicide rate continued to fall in 2005 and stood at its lowest ever level. Furthermore a recent report from the national programme on substance abuse deaths based at St George's Hospital in London shows that the number deaths involving co-proxamol had declined since the CSM took action.

Dental Services

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 7 March 2007,  Official Report, column 2098W, on dental services, how many dentists were operating on open NHS contracts in Somerset in each of the last 10 years, broken down by primary care trust.

Rosie Winterton: Data on the number of NHS dentists in Somerset from 31 March 1997 to 31 March 2006 are available in Annex E of the NHS Dental Activity and Workforce Report England: 31 March 2006, which is available in the Library.
	The report, published by the information centre for health and social care, is also available at:
	http://www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/dwfactivity.
	Information on the dental work force under the new dental contractual arrangements, introduced on 1 April 2006, is published at every quarter by the information centre for health and social care. These data are not comparable with the historical data in the link above. The latest information available is as at 31 December 2006 by the new primary care trusts (PCT) boundaries (PCT boundaries as at 1 October 2006) published on 23 March 2007—NHS Dental Statistics for England Quarter 3: 31 December 2006 and is available in the Library.
	The report, published by The Information Centre for health and social care, is also available at:
	http://www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/dental06q3.

Departments: Research

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  to what extent preferences shown by members of the public influence the research priorities set by her Department's research and development division;
	(2)  what  (a) process and  (b) decision-making criteria will be used to set research funding priorities for her Department's research and development division in each of the next three years; and what the timetable is for the setting of those priorities in each year;
	(3)  what formula is used to set funding allocations for different medical research specialties for her Department's research and development.

Caroline Flint: The Department funds National Health Service Research and Development through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). Information on the priority setting processes for each NIHR programme is available through the NIHR website at www.nihr.ac.uk. The Government's strategy for health research 'Best Research for Best Health' was subject to open public consultation.
	The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence and the United Kingdom National Screening Committee also act as customers for departmental research, and advisory bodies, research funders groups and topic review groups play a role in identifying research gaps and requirements.
	The Department's Policy Research Programme (PRP) commissions research to support the development, implementation and evaluation of policy in public health, health services and adult social care. Priorities for the PRP are determined by the Department's strategic objectives and public service agreements, and through discussion between officials and with Ministers.
	The NIHR national advisory group INVOLVE promotes and supports active public involvement in all aspects of NHS, public health and social care research. Its website (www.invo.org.uk) and its publications give both researchers and the public information and advice on the range of opportunities for such involvement that exist.
	More specifically, any individual or organisation can submit a suggestion for consideration by the NIHR Health Technology Assessment (HTA) programme. An electronic form is available on the HTA website at www.hta.ac.uk/suggest.

Drugs: Counselling

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in London were referred to  (a) counselling and  (b) other advice services for help with drug related problems in each of the last 10 years, broken down by (i) health trust and (ii) borough.

Caroline Flint: We do not hold data on the numbers of people who were referred for counselling (structured psychosocial interventions) for drug related problems prior to 2003-04.
	The following table shows the number of people broken down by Drug Action Team boundaries in London for the years 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06 who were referred for counselling (structured psychosocial intervention) for drug related problems in 2003-04. We do not have these figures on a health trust basis.
	These figures are based on returns to the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System.
	We do not collect data on the numbers of people referred to other advice services for drug related problems.
	
		
			   Numbers in structured psychosocial intervention 
			  2003-04  
			 Barking and Dagenham 147 
			 Barnet 14 
			 Bexley 4 
			 Brent 55 
			 Bromley 146 
			 Camden 323 
			 City of London 0 
			 Croydon 95 
			 Ealing 31 
			 Enfield 12 
			 Greenwich 382 
			 Hackney 51 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 5 
			 Haringey 150 
			 Harrow 2 
			 Havering 147 
			 Hillingdon 274 
			 Hounslow 26 
			 Islington 133 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 10 
			 Kingston upon Thames 41 
			 Lambeth 149 
			 Lewisham 85 
			 Merton 26 
			 Newham 60 
			 Redbridge 28 
			 Richmond upon Thames 14 
			 Southwark 149 
			 Sutton 146 
			 Tower Hamlets 134 
			 Waltham Forest 2 
			 Wandsworth 118 
			 Westminster 36 
			   
			  2004-05  
			 Barking and Dagenham 244 
			 Barnet 162 
			 Bexley 5 
			 Brent 143 
			 Bromley 49 
			 Camden 343 
			 City of London 0 
			 Croydon 178 
			 Ealing 425 
			 Enfield 8 
			 Greenwich 49 
			 Hackney 39 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 287 
			 Haringey 125 
			 Harrow 4 
			 Havering 194 
			 Hillingdon 188 
			 Hounslow 165 
			 Islington 287 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 141 
			 Kingston upon Thames 101 
			 Lambeth 148 
			 Lewisham 80 
			 Merton 459 
			 Newham 154 
			 Redbridge 215 
			 Richmond upon Thames 216 
			 Southwark 27 
			 Sutton 290 
			 Tower Hamlets 169 
			 Waltham Forest 18 
			 Wandsworth 175 
			 Westminster 251 
			   
			  2005-06  
			 Barking and Dagenham 248 
			 Barnet 149 
			 Bexley 48 
			 Brent 154 
			 Bromley 196 
			 Camden 303 
			 City of London 1 
			 Croydon 72 
			 Ealing 346 
			 Enfield 14 
			 Greenwich 47 
			 Hackney 35 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 691 
			 Haringey 97 
			 Harrow 98 
			 Havering 89 
			 Hillingdon 183 
			 Hounslow 232 
			 Islington 173 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 94 
			 Kingston upon Thames 67 
			 Lambeth 111 
			 Lewisham 18 
			 Merton 527 
			 Newham 161 
			 Redbridge 77 
			 Richmond upon Thames 244 
			 Southwark 34 
			 Sutton 330 
			 Tower Hamlets 81 
			 Waltham Forest 133 
			 Wandsworth 138 
			 Westminster 174

Epilepsy and Multiple Sclerosis

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of NHS services available for patients with  (a) epilepsy and  (b) multiple sclerosis.

Ivan Lewis: We have made no recent assessment of the effectiveness of national health service services available for those living with epilepsy, or with multiple sclerosis.

Genito-Urinary Medicine: Waiting Lists

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of attenders at genito-urinary medicine (GUM) clinics was recorded as not having been given an appointment within two weeks in each audit of GUM clinic waiting times undertaken by the Health Protection Agency up to and including the February 2007 audit.

Caroline Flint: The percentage of attendees at genito-urinary medicine (GUM) clinics in England who were seen in 14 days or more, May 2004 to February 2007 is given in the following table.
	
		
			  Audit  Number seen in 14 or more days  Total seen  Percentage seen 14 or more days 
			 May 2004 2,268 13,683 17 
			 Nov 2004 1,928 13,892 14 
			 May 2005 4,137 16,441 25 
			 Aug 2005 3,242 15,255 21 
			 Nov 2005 3,236 15,514 21 
			 Feb 2006 2,734 15,455 18 
			 May 2006 2,599 16,869 15 
			 Aug 2006 2,237 17,189 13 
			 Nov 2006 1,760 17,490 10 
			 Feb 2007 1,523 18,691 8 
			  Notes: 1. The table gives the data for two weeks or more, rather than more than two weeks, as these are the data that are available. 2. The audit is based on quarterly one-week samples of new and rebooked attendees (a rebook attendee is defined for this audit as someone who has not been into the clinic for six weeks or more) who self complete a standard brief questionnaire. 3. All tables exclude responses that do not include a valid answer to the waiting time question (Q6 in February 2007 and Q5 in previous audits). From May 2006, responses that do not include a valid appointment day are also excluded. 4. See full methodology for details: www.hpa.org.uk/infections/topics_az/hiv_and_sti/epidemiology/Waiting_times_Introduction_Method_Feb2007.pdf

Haemophilia

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research her Department undertook between 1980 and 1990 into  (a) haemophilia and  (b) haemophilia linked to HIV; and what the (i) date and (ii) aims were of each project.

Caroline Flint: The Department's principal funding for and expenditure on research and development in the years from 1980 to 1990 was undertaken on a regional basis and the information needed to answer the hon. Member's question is not held centrally. The information that is available gives no indication that research in the areas in question was centrally commissioned during that time.
	The Medical Research Council's (MRC) report 'AIDS Research 1990' gives an account of a body of MRC-funded research that includes projects concerned with haemophilia and AIDS. A copy of the report is available in the Library.

Haemophilia

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health why funding for the Haemophilia Society has been withdrawn.

Caroline Flint: The Haemophilia Society has received core funding under the Section 64 General Scheme of Grants for a number of years. We have not withdrawn Section 64 funding. In line with the criteria for the Section 64 scheme we recently informed the Haemophilia Society that we will be reducing their funding and provided an explanation for the reduction in funding well in advance to allow them to plan for this change.
	The following level of funding will be provided over the next three years:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2007-08 60,000 
			 2008-09 30,000 
			 2009-10 30,000

Local Improvement Finance Trust

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Local Improvement Finance Trust centres are planned for  (a) Staffordshire,  (b) the West Midlands and  (c) Tamworth constituency.

Andy Burnham: There are currently six Local Improvement Finance Trust (LIFT) schemes within the NHS West Midlands strategic health authority area. The Department of Health is able to confirm that one of these schemes is located in the North Staffordshire primary care trust (PCT) area. However, there are no current LIFT schemes in the South Staffordshire PCT area, which includes Tamworth.
	Each LIFT Scheme is comprised of a number of individual LIFT centres and the number of these is shown in the table, broken down by the geographical areas requested and their current status.
	
		
			  Geographical area  Completed and operational  Under construction ( 1) Planned 
			 West Midlands 15 8 15 
			 Staffordshire 4 1 2 
			 Tamworth _ _. _ 
			 (1 )The term planned = all of the planned centres that the Department is aware of, which are prior to financial close and construction.

Hearing Impairment: Audio Equipment

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of the number of people using iPods who will suffer hearing impairment as a result.

Ivan Lewis: We have made no estimate of the number of people using iPods who will suffer hearing impairment.

HIV Infection: Greater London

Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were diagnosed with HIV in each London borough in each of the last five years.

Caroline Flint: The HIV caseload for each London borough from 2001 to 2005 is shown in the table.
	This corrects the information given in my answer to the hon. Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Lynne Featherstone), on 5 March 2007,  Official Report, col. 1686-87w.
	
		
			  Number of diagnosed HIV-infected individuals resident in London local authorities, 2001-05 
			   Survey year 
			  Local authority  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 Barking and Dagenham 140 191 277 322 344 
			 Barnet 335 398 442 447 501 
			 Bexley 86 108 125 157 176 
			 Brent 478 554 619 653 720 
			 Bromley 126 162 175 215 245 
			 Camden 884 990 1,072 1,103 1,101 
			 City of London 17 25 30 32 41 
			 Croydon 500 629 635 712 782 
			 Ealing 408 437 487 525 586 
			 Enfield 270 334 417 465 539 
			 Greenwich 318 422 506 589 647 
			 Hackney 615 699 800 871 989 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 733 795 824 865 916 
			 Haringey 680 751 840 913 986 
			 Harrow 145 160 199 207 223 
			 Havering 38 60 85 89 106 
			 Hillingdon 153 182 226 270 302 
			 Hounslow 282 329 420 478 516 
			 Islington 704 796 954 966 1,025 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 759 791 815 865 916 
			 Kingston upon Thames 129 119 145 155 182 
			 Lambeth 1,394 1,596 1,802 1,957 2,154 
			 Lewisham 611 692 815 872 968 
			 Merton 229 257 286 334 376 
			 Newham 757 871 1,012 1,072 1,132 
			 Redbridge 198 248 303 355 377 
			 Richmond upon Thames 146 157 167 160 185 
			 Southwark 1,033 1,190 1,350 1,510 1,699 
			 Sutton 94 115 143 168 186 
			 Tower Hamlets 442 550 637 683 755 
			 Waltham Forest 372 445 524 552 610 
			 Wandsworth 643 682 738 792 855 
			 Westminster 777 862 953 1,033 1,074 
			 London: LA not known 9 15 1 0 34 
			  Source: Survey of Prevalent HIV Infections Diagnosed (SOPHID), 2001-05. SOPHID collects residential and epidemiological information on individuals accessing HIV care within a calendar year in England, Wales or Northern Ireland. All figures exclude infants born to HIV-infected women in the survey year but who were uninfected or whose infection status was indeterminate. At least 98 per cent. of indeterminate infants will subsequently be confirmed as uninfected.

Homeopathy

Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether a patient wishing to choose NHS homeopathy and other forms of complementary medicine will be able to access such services from one of the four NHS homeopathic hospitals; and how many other hospitals plan to offer such services.

Caroline Flint: The homeopathic hospitals in the United Kingdom fall under the jurisdiction of the national health service in the area in which they are based. Any decisions on the services any of these hospitals provide are the responsibility of those NHS healthcare organisations.
	The Government consider that decision-making on individual clinical interventions, whether conventional or complementary/alternative treatments, have to be a matter for local NHS service providers and practitioners as they are best placed to know their community's needs. In making such decisions, they have to take into account evidence regarding safety, the clinical and cost-effectiveness of any treatments, the availability of suitably qualified practitioners, and the needs of the individual patient. Clinical responsibility rests with the NHS professional who makes the decision to refer and who must therefore be able to justify any treatment they recommend. If they are unconvinced about the suitability of a particular treatment, they cannot be made to refer.

Influenza: Vaccination

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate she has made of the proportion of patients in each group whose health is deemed at risk from seasonal influenza who received their seasonal influenza immunisation for the 2006-07 winter.

Caroline Flint: Data collected by the Health Protection Agency for influenza vaccinations for 2006-07 show as follows:
	Those under 65 years of age and in a medical risk group:
	
		
			   Percentage 
			 Chronic respiratory disease 41 
			 Chronic heart disease 54 
			 Chronic renal disease 40 
			 Chronic liver disease 32 
			 Immunosuppression 34 
			 Diabetes 69 
		
	
	Those aged 65 years and over—74 per cent.

Maternity Services: Death

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many maternal deaths there were whilst receiving maternity care in  (a) Yorkshire and  (b) England in each of the last three years.

Ivan Lewis: The information is not available in the format requested. However, the confidential enquiry into Maternal and Child Health (CEMACH)'s report on maternal death for the three-year period 2000-02 showed that there were 106 direct maternal deaths in that period, representing 5.3 deaths per thousand of the two million births. The next CEMACH report (for 2003-05) will be published at the end of the year.

Mental Health Services: Gloucestershire

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she expects to make a final decision on the reconfiguration of mental health services provided by Gloucestershire Partnership NHS Trust.

Ivan Lewis: The case has been referred to the Independent Reconfiguration Panel and the panel will provide advice to the Secretary of State by 27 July. Following receipt of the panel's report, the Secretary of State will then make a final decision on the case.

Modernising Medical Careers

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to her oral statement on 16 April 2007,  Official Report, column 41, on modernising medical careers, how many members of the independent review chaired by Professor John Tooke were members of the review group which dealt with this year's recruitment process.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 30 April 2007
	Professor Sir John Tooke has not yet confirmed the membership of his review group, although this is being considered as a matter of urgency so that the independent review can commence its business as soon as possible.

National Midwifery Council: Funding

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding was provided by her Department to support the establishment of the National Midwifery Council.

Ivan Lewis: According to our records, the Department granted funding between April 2002 and April 2004 totalling £3,656,382.81 to support the establishment of the Nursing and Midwifery Council. Figures prior to April 2002 are currently unavailable without extensive research.

National Midwifery Council: Funding

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what annual funding is provided by her Department to the National Midwifery Council.

Ivan Lewis: According to our records no funding has been paid to the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) by the Department since April 2004. The NMC is an autonomous organisation funded by registration fees and does not receive funding from the Department.

NHS Direct

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the number of callers to NHS Direct who ring more than once a week; and whether individuals have been banned from calling NHS Direct.

Andy Burnham: The information requested is not held centrally. This is a matter for the Chief Executive of the NHS Direct national health service trust.

NHS Treatment Centres: Private Sector

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what her new policy is on providing an independent sector treatment centre for South East Essex; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  how much has been spent to date on securing an independent sector treatment centre for South East Essex.

Andy Burnham: The Department is working with the NHS East of England SHA to deliver independent sector treatment centre (ISTC) services in Essex. It is currently anticipated that there will be three ISTCs in the region, located in Braintree, Basildon and Southend.
	The aims of the Department's ISTC programme are to:
	help provide capacity to deliver swift access to treatment for national health service patients.
	support the implementation of patient choice.
	stimulate innovative models of service delivery and drive up productivity, and;
	introduce contestability between providers of healthcare services for NHS patients.
	The ISTC programme comprises central resources which work across all schemes and the programme in general. These resources are not disaggregated by individual scheme.
	In wave 1 of the ISTC programme ex-gratia payments were made in relation to the South Essex scheme. The amounts paid are commercially sensitive.

NHS: Choose and Book System

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of general practitioner referrals to first consultant-led out-patient services were made through the choose and book system by 1 April.

Andy Burnham: During March 2007 a total of 283,149 general practitioner referrals to first consultant-led out-patient services were made through the choose and book system. This equates to 38 per cent. of first out-patient referrals nationally, and represents a range of between 8 per cent. and 91 per cent. for different primary care trusts.

NHS: Choose and Book System

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 13 March 2007,  Official Report, column 318W, on patient choice schemes, what the total costs of  (a) preparing,  (b) implementing and  (c) rolling out the Choose and Book system have been since the system was first proposed.

Andy Burnham: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 13 March 2007,  Official Report, column 317W.

NHS: Choose and Book System

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what budget was set for each local trust for the implementation of the Choose and Book system for each year in which the system has been in operation.

Andy Burnham: I refer the hon. Member to the response given on 12 March 2007,  Official Report, column 141-42W.

NHS: Public Participation

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of  (a) the winding-up costs of (i) the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health and (ii) PPI forums and  (b) the start-up costs for local involvement networks; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 1 May 2007
	The precise cost of winding-up the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health (CPPIH) is not yet known as some costs such as those for making staff redundant will not become clear until later in the year. However, we do know that all costs associated with the wind-up of the CPPIH will be covered from within its existing funding allocation. There will be no costs associated with the wind-up of PPI forums as all associated costs for forums are contained within limited contracts between the CPPIH and forum support organisations.
	The cost of establishing local involvement networks (LINks) will depend on locally relevant factors including size of the network, nature of the population, resource structure of the host, and other variables. Funds to cover LINk establishment and their running costs are currently being bid for as part of the spending review process.

Obesity: Children

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made towards meeting the public services agreement target of July 2004 that by 2010 the increase in obesity among children aged under 11 years will be halted.

Caroline Flint: Despite the very challenging nature of the public service agreement (PSA) target we have made good progress. For example:
	OFCOM has announced restrictions to ensure no high fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) products are broadcast advertised to pre-school children; in programmes specifically made for children; or in programmes of particular appeal to children up to 16 years old.
	The 2005-06 school sport survey found that overall 80 per cent. of pupils participate in at least two hours of high quality physical education and school sport a week, meeting our PSA target early.
	New, tougher nutritional standards for school food have been announced and those for school lunches have been in place since September 2006.
	We launched the Top Tips for Top Mums campaign, in March 2007, to help parents tackle the four key barriers to children eating fruit and vegetables (cost, fussy eaters, limited time/cooking skills, and a lack of structured meal occasions). This was the first in a series of campaigns using social marketing approaches.
	Obviously tackling obesity is a complex issue, requiring action on a number of fronts and working closely with families and individuals to change behaviour. It is extremely positive that internationally our approach is regarded as good practice, informing for example, the World Health Organisation Europe Charter on Counteracting Obesity, published in November last year.

Patients: Per Capita Costs

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent per head by the NHS on care and treatment for  (a) all people,  (b) children,  (c) young people,  (d) those aged 65 years and over and  (e) those aged 80 years and over in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Andy Burnham: The following table shows hospital and community health services (HCHS) expenditure per head of population in 2003-04. The table shows the available age group breakdown, which differs from that requested.
	
		
			  Age group  Expenditure per head (£) 
			 All births 2,742 
			 Age 0-4 1,046 
			 Age 5-15 210 
			 Age 16-44 459 
			 Age 45-64 586 
			 Age 65-74 1,416 
			 Age 75-84 2,371 
			 Age 85+ 4,077 
			 Average 765 
			  Note: 2003-04 is the latest year these data are available.  Source:  HCHS Programme Budget 2003-04 and ONS mid-year population estimates 2003.

Smoking: Railway and other Stations

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she has taken with  (a) train, bus and coach operators and  (b) Network Rail to inform passengers of the introduction of a ban on smoking at railway and other stations.

Caroline Flint: The smokefree provisions within the Health Act 2006 will apply to virtually all enclosed and substantially enclosed public places and workplaces, as well as to public transport vehicles. Many forms of public transport are already smokefree. London Underground ended smoking on all its trains and stations 20 years ago.
	The Department has met Network Rail and organisations representing all train operators, bus and coach operators in an effort to support the transport industry in their preparations for the implementation of smokefree legislation on 1 July 2007.
	All smokefree premises and vehicles will be required under smokefree legislation to display no-smoking signs that meet specified requirements. Signs will allow clear communication with smokers so they are clear where smoking is not permitted under the new law. Signs will also make it clear to non-smokers where they have a right to expect a smokefree environment, as well as helping to demonstrate that people who manage premises are taking reasonable steps to prevent smoking from taking place. The Government has drafted smokefree regulations to ensure that much of the pre-existing no-smoking signage displayed in public transport vehicles will meet requirements.

Smoking: Social Clubs

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she has taken to ensure working men's clubs are aware of the forthcoming ban on smoking.

Caroline Flint: The Department is providing a range of information and support to businesses to help them be ready for the implementation of smokefree legislation on 1 July 2007.
	On 23 March 2007, the Department published the guide "Everything you need to prepare for the new smokefree law on 1 July 2007", with comprehensive information on smokefree legislation for businesses. The guide will be included within a pack that was posted to all employing and trading businesses in England, including working men's clubs, during April and is also available to download on the Smokefree England website at:
	www.smokefreeengland.co.uk.
	The guidance packs that businesses have received also include no-smoking signs and other support materials.
	A Smokefree England ministerial reference group comprised of key stakeholders was created last year to facilitate dialogue between business groups (including representatives from the hospitality industry), local government and the Department, and has met regularly. The Committee of Registered Clubs' Associations (CORCA), representing working men's clubs, is a member of the reference group.
	Through the Smokefree England campaign, the Department been working with CORCA to help communicate how the new law will affect members clubs, and has met with CORCA representatives regularly. The Department will continue to provide CORCA and working men's clubs with assistance and advice to support their preparations for the implementation of smokefree legislation.
	Businesses can also contact their local council for information and advice on getting ready for the implementation of smokefree legislation.

Surgery: Cancellations

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Hull and East Yorkshire NHS trust patients had their operation cancelled up to 14 days before the operation in the last 12 months for which figures are available; and how many such operations were for  (a) knee surgery,  (b) hip replacements,  (c) ophthalmology surgery and  (d) urology surgery.

Andy Burnham: Data collected centrally cover cancellations for non-clinical reasons on the day the patient is due to arrive or after arrival in hospital, and for non-clinical reasons on the day of surgery. The data are available by provider but not by speciality. There were 744 such cancellations in the period January to December 2006 at Hull and East Yorkshire national health service trust. This equates to 1.1 per cent. of elective admissions.